Beautiful Stranger
by Rosesareforever
Summary: On her eighteenth birthday, Elena decided to throw a huge party at the Grill. Totally drunk, she slept with a blue eyed stranger. What will happen when four years later, he'd turn out to be her new boss? Totally D/E like usual!
1. Prologue

**Beautiful Stranger**

**Summary:** On her eighteenth birthday, Elena decided to throw a huge party at the Grill. Totally drunk, she slept with a blue eyed stranger. What will happen when four years later; he'd turn out to be her new boss? Totally D/E like usual!

**Warning: **Rated M for a reason ;)

**Disclaimer: **I don't own the vampire diaries.

**A/N: **The idea for this story just came to my mind, I know it's not new but I wanted to write it anyway. So I hope you like it too. If you've questions, just PM me!

I also wanna thank my Beta Bibi! Like usual, she's been a great help to me!

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><p><strong>Prologue:<strong>

_Haven't we met  
>You're some kind of beautiful stranger<br>You could be good for me  
>I have the taste for danger<em>

_If I'm smart then I'll run away but I'm not so I guess I'll stay_  
><em>Heaven forbid<em>  
><em>I'll take my chance on a beautiful stranger<em>

_I looked into your eyes and my world came tumbling down_  
><em>You're the devil in disguise that's why I'm singing this song<em>

_._

_._

_._

It was almost midnight but Elena wasn't ready to go home just yet. She was enjoying herself, for the first time in a long, long time. It had been years since she had this much fun. After her parents died, she got into some kind of depression and the word 'fun' seemed to have lost its meaning. Her brother on the other hand, started drug dealing and she had been too worried about him to think about her own needs. But tonight she was determined to change that. Tonight she would have fun; she would be the 'old' Elena again even though no one believed her.

It took Caroline hours to convince Elena to go through with the party…and now she was glad she did. After all she's been through, she deserved this. It might be her last chance to have some fun and enjoy time with her friends before she'd go off for college.

She danced all night long and drank so much that it was hard for her to think clearly. She was acting on auto-pilot, not caring about what people would think of her. Actually, not caring about anything at all. For once, she totally forget about everything that happened in the past.

She danced around like it was her second nature and giggled each time she almost lost her balance. Really, she should stop drinking now.

"Elena, I think it's time to go home," her friend told her a bit worried.

"I don't want to go home, Caroline. Please, I'm having sooo much fun," she cooed smiling. Although her words weren't understandable anymore.

"Please," she said again, pouting this time.

"Okay, but not too much Lena. You're so wasted. I don't want to be there when you'll wake up in the morning."

"Oh, come on, live a little!" she babbled.

"Hey, not fair, that used to be my line!," Caroline answered while shaking her head. Elena really lost her mind. Great, why again did she threw this party?

Not caring about what her friend had to say, Elena walked away from her; she made her way towards the bar, and asked for another beer. The bartender gave her one immediately, not even trying to talk her out of it. This was really a nice place, Elena thought smiling.

After drinking it in one gulp, she moved towards the dance floor again, starting to shake her hips. She was totally relaxed. She closed her eyes, just moving on the rhythm of the music, not thinking, not worrying; letting go of everything, even if she knew it won't last. She felt free again, ready for a life full a pleasure and happiness.

When she opened her eyes again, there were two beautiful ocean blue ones staring into hers. A shiver went through her spine and a sudden tension came into the room.

She wanted to look away, look to the other side of the room, but she couldn't. A different kind of power wouldn't let her, so she kept looking into those eyes…the dept in them was unbelievably. She felt like she could stare in them for hours without even blinking.

And then, he started moving towards her and her heart skipped a beat. What would she do now? What would she say to him? The closer he got, the more questions she got. But my, my, was he beautiful! She could see him now that he was close enough and he was definitely handsome, more than handsome he was every girl's dream. He looked like a Greek God.

He walked towards her like a feline stocking its prey, his eyes never leaving hers and the tension became unbearable. Her mind stopped working on its own; and she didn't know if she should run away from him or towards him. Never in her life, had she felt something as strong as what she was feeling now. It was like the entire world had disappeared and he was the only thing she could see.

"Hello beautiful," he said smirking, sending little shivers through her body. Damn, even his voice screamed sexy, she thought. Why does he affect me this much? She asked herself. He's just a guy, a beautiful guy…but just a guy…. as she was saying the words in her mind, she knew she was lying. He was more than 'just a guy', much more.

"Hi," she answered shyly. She could not believe how dumb she sounded. She was a strong independent woman, not some kind of naïve teenager. That was in the past; right now, she was smarter, she was confident and she didn't get shy just because some guy smirked at her. Or at least she thought she was.

"Do you want something to drink?" he asked friendly.

"I think I already had too much to drink," she admitted smiling while tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. "So…what's your name?" she asked.

"Damon."

"Well hello Damon, nice to meet you. I'm Elena." Why did she suddenly sound so stupid? Normally she was a very confident person, but now it all felt so unreal. She really had too much to drink.

"Nice to meet you too, Elena," he answered charmingly. "Are you alone here?"

"No, I'm here with some friends. We're celebrating my birthday."

"So it's your birthday? What's your new number?"

"Eighteen," she answered proudly.

"Well, happy birthday, Elena. Why don't we celebrate it together?"

"I think that's a very good idea," she smiled, truly happy. Even with that much alcohol in her system, she still knew what she was doing and at the moment, she was actually very happy with herself. True, he was a total stranger but he didn't look dangerous so why not go for it? It was her eighteenth birthday after all. She was officially an adult.

* * *

><p>Later that night they arrived at his apartment, they'd spent the evening dancing and drinking together and having fun. She'd loosen up again and enjoyed her night. Although Caroline didn't look too thrilled about her going home with Damon instead of her.<p>

Of course, it had been a girls night out, but out of everyone, Caroline should be the one to understand this. She was a real 'party girl' and she went out with pretty much every boy in town, no put intended. Elena loved her friend, but sometimes Caroline could act really crazy.

His apartment looked stunning, it was very modern but still cozy. The living room was beautifully decorated and there was a huge flat screen against the wall. On the left side of the room was a large cabinet with all different kinds of movies in it. He had a really big collection, she could see.

"Do you like it?" he asked when she was looking around.

She immediately turned around until she was facing him again, "I love it, you have a beautiful home."

"Thanks. I like it a lot myself."

"I wish I had a nice place like this too, not that I'm complaining, but my aunts' style is much different than mine."

"You live with your aunt?"

"Yeah, my parents died two years ago in a car accident. So my aunt came to live with us as our legal guardian."

"I'm sorry. Did you just say 'us'; you have a brother or sister?"

"A brother; do you have any relatives?"

"Not many. My mother died when I was five years old, but I have a brother as well."

"I guess it's my turn to say I'm sorry. Life must have been very hard without your mother."

"It was. But I don't want to talk about that."

"Me neither. Let's have some fun!" she said cheerful.

"Yeah, let's have some fun," he agreed before walking close to her. She immediately felt the tension coming back and her heartbeat racing. For a moment, she was scared her heart would jump out of her chest if it won't slow down.

Their eyes met and stayed locked while he walked closer. He was now standing right in front of her. He slowly caressed her cheek before bringing her face towards him. When their lips met, fireworks exploded around them and it was like nothing she ever experienced before. Blood was racing through her veins and her heart was pumping heavily.

When his tongue trailed against her lips she immediately opened them, giving him access to explore her mouth. He nibbled seductively at her lip, making her moan softly. She wrapped her arms around him and got entirely lost in their kiss.

Their make out session didn't last for more than five minutes, though, as they started pulling off each other's clothes. In no time they were both standing in the middle of the bedroom, with a trail of clothes behind them.

It was pure animal lust that went through her spine and she couldn't think about anything else than him and his incredibly hot body. Their kisses grew more passionate until they both plopped onto the king-size bed in Damon's room.

He started sucking on her neck, making her gasp loudly when he found the right spot. He slowly started trailing down until he was at her full breasts. He squeezed them both in his hands before nipping at her nipple, his tongue massaging her sensitive spots. "Damon," she moaned when he stayed teasing her until he finally went lower.

She let out a loud growl when he kissed her tights, encouraging him to move further. Relief went through her when he finally dipped his finger in her arching folds. She was so wet for him, full with need. Her moaning increased when he started rubbing against her sensitive bundle of nerves.

When he started using his experienced tongue she didn't know how much longer she'd be able to take it. He touched her in all the right places and she could feel her release taking over. Her body started to shudder and her mind exploded, it hit her like a truck and all her thoughts disappeared. Never in her life, had she experienced something this intense. Surely she had had some orgasms before, but none like this; never like this.

He licked her juices away and Elena thought it looked really sexy doing that. He crawled up again and kissed her. Their tongues battled for dominance while she pulled on his hair.

She could feel herself getting wet again, only from kissing him like that. He carefully positioned himself at her entrance and gave her one last passionate kiss before driving into her. The sensation was too much, he filled her completely and it felt just perfect. He gave her some time to adjust at his length before starting a slow pace thrusting into her.

She arched her back, pleading him to go faster. When he changed the angle and started hitting her g-spot she thought her body would explode. She started moaning loudly, screaming his name through the room. He hit her in all the right ways and she loved it.

He speed up and started rubbing his thumb against her clit, making her dizzy. Just when she thought she won't be able to hold it anymore he started sucking on her nipple, making the entire world disappear once again before she climaxed hard. Her world shattered into pieces while she chanted his name over and over again.

It took them both sometime before they could finally breathe normally again. "That was amazing," she whispered, desperately trying to get some air into her lunges. It was like all the oxygen was sucked out of the room.

"Better," he answered smiling before attacking her lips once again.

* * *

><p><strong>Thanks for reading. I hope you liked the prologue. I usually don't write smut in the first chapter but this story was the perfect opportunity to finally do it. <strong>

**Please let me know if you want me to continue! **

**The next update will be the actual first chapter. I'll start the real plot from there on. **

_**Beautiful Stranger, Madonna**_


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: Fist of all, I wanna thank everyone who reviewed! You really encouraged me to write this story! Secondly, I wanna warn you. This story will be written from Elena's point of view. Which includes you'll only get to see her thoughts. The first few chapter will show how she lives. So I'm sorry if you've to wait for Delena but it'll come eventually! I'll make up for it in a few chapters but I really need a plot! ;) **

**Disclaimer: I don't own the vampire diaries. **

* * *

><p><em>Comparisons are easily done<em>  
><em>Once you've had a taste of perfection<em>  
><em>Like an apple hanging from a tree<em>  
><em>I picked the ripest one<em>  
><em>I still got the seed<em>

_You said move on_  
><em>Where do I go<em>  
><em>I guess second best<em>  
><em>Is all I will know<em>

_Cause when I'm with him_  
><em>I am thinking of you<em>  
><em>Thinking of you<em>  
><em>What you would do if<em>  
><em>You were the one<em>  
><em>Who was spending the night<em>  
><em>Oh I wish that I<em>  
><em>Was looking into your eyes<em>

_._

_._

_._

_._

**Chapter 1:**

Elena was running through the corridors of Mystic Falls Computers, she was way too late. How the hell could this be happening? Just when she was supposed to meet her new boss, she overslept…what a day. Not that the rest of the month had been much better, because her boss had decided to retire, she had been working even more overtime than she usually did.

Depressed by the thought, she walked into the office. Her assistant and best friend Caroline, was waiting for her, besides her desk. "Jesus Elena, do you know what time it is?" she exclaimed.

"I know, Care, I'm so sorry."

"You're lucky you're not the only one who's late today," Caroline stated.

"What do you mean? Our new boss hasn't arrived yet?"

"Luckily for you, it seems that Mr. Salvatore had some car trouble this morning. Jane told me he will be an hour late. Jane was the direction secretary, she used to work for Mr. Lockwood, but since he gave up the business to go on retirement, she now worked for the new CEO. No one saw him yet, but they were going to meet Mr. Salvatore today. From what she heard, he was a very powerful businessman who made a beautiful career during the years. She was really looking forward to meet him.

"I'm really glad about that. I would've been so embarrassed if he would've had to wait for me."

"I know that. Why the hell are you so late anyway? You're normally very punctual."

"Maybe it's the stress. I had a bad day yesterday, which made me sleep through my alarm this morning."

"Is it Jeremy again? Is he in trouble?"

"You can say that. Everything seemed fine at first. I thought getting caught made him stop, I thought 6 months in jail made him re-think his life plan, but it doesn't look good. He just got back to rehab. I'm just so scared he'll start dealing again. He told me he learned his lesson and he's finally done with all that shit, but I just can't believe him. After everything we've been through…he has to earn my trust again. Which won't be easy, I guess."

"I know it's hard for you to believe him, Elena, but you have to find away to do it, otherwise he'll shut you out again, like he did after your parents died. He's having a hard time and he needs his big sister."

"Of course he needs me. The only problem is that, I need some time too. After all those years, I'm still trying to find my own happiness, but no one gives me the chance to do that. I'm just sick of being this boring woman who can't have fun."

"For a while it seemed to go in the right way…"

"You mean when I got totally wasted and slept with a complete stranger?"

"You must admit, your eighteenth birthday was definitely one you'll never forget. It was an amazing idea of me to suggest throwing a party."

"You're right about that one. I'll never forget him… and I really mean that."

"He was really that good huh?"

"Care, we're at work, this is not the place for us to discuss such thing!"

"Calm down, Elena, I was just asking! Now, shall we prepare things for the meeting?"

"Sure. Who's going to be there?"

"All the directors, including us," she answered proudly.

"It's not because I'm the head of the research department that we mean that much. They don't even listen to us at meetings."

"Come on, they do listen to you. Who again got that important client last week?"

"That was just a coincidence."

"Do you even hear yourself, Elena? Where is your confidence? You know well enough you're important to this firm. Why do you think they give you such a high position when you're only twenty two? It's not like they couldn't find people who have more experience."

"You have an important position too."

"I'm your assistant, that's not even half as important as yours."

"Okay, maybe I'm a little important."

"How's Jenna doing by the way? I haven't heard much of her over the last few weeks."

"Yeah, I know. Since she married Ric I don't see her as often as I used to. She's been great at the whole 'parent thing', but now she finally has time for herself. She deserves it; she doesn't need to keep worrying about Jeremy and me. Although, I have the feeling Jeremy could use a real parent."

"You've been there for him."

"But that's still not enough. I always thought it was just period, all his problems and stuff…but it seems to be much worse than I imagined. I just hope being in jail opened his eyes."

"Yeah, I still can't believe he's been in jail, even if it was just for a few months."

"Well, that's what he get's for dealing. He needed this, to learn that he can't get away with everything just because he lost his parents."

"What did he say when he came home last night?"

"Not much actually. He just ordered a pizza, drank a beer and went to bed."

"He's lucky he can stay in your apartment."

"Only he doesn't really appreciate it. He just acts like nothing ever happened…but it did happen and I can't pretend like it didn't, I just can't. He made some big mistakes and he needs to take responsibility for them. He needs to find a job and have a normal life again. I can't keep paying the bills."

"You're right about that but do you think he's ready for a job?"

"Ready or not, he has to. I mean it this time, if he screws up, he'll have to find another place to stay. I'm sick and tired of watching him all day. He's a grown up man now, he doesn't need a babysitter anymore."

She wasn't lying this time. If her brother won't stop dealing; she will throw him out. She couldn't handle the pain anymore; time after time she got hurt because of him. He promised her so many times he would stop but he had lied. Together with his stoned girlfriend Vicky, they made her life a living hell during the past few years. He needed to learn she wasn't some kind of backup plan for when he was in trouble. He wasn't a kid anymore.

Even Jenna couldn't forgive him, she was still very angry. That's also the reason why she left town with her husband. She couldn't handle seeing Jeremy going down deeper and deeper. When she heard he was in jail, she was a wreck, but Elena told her she had to stay away for her own happiness. Jenna couldn't stay and babysit her brother, she needed to live her own life and be happy.

"Did I already tell you Jenna's pregnant?"

"She is?" Caroline asked surprised.

"Yeah, she called me a few days ago. I thought I already told you, it must've slipped my mind. I'm sorry; I haven't been much of a friend lately."

"I understand the situation you're in, Elena. You don't have to explain a thing to me; I had my own troubles during the years. I know how hard life can be sometimes. Just never forget I'm there for you and I'll always be." Caroline did have some tough years. After her boyfriend Matt broke up with her she kind of got a little lost and started dating creeps. Then her mother got sick and fought for her life, Caroline never really got over all of that. She still had a hard time just thinking about what happened; she would've gone crazy if something happened to her mom. Luckily she healed pretty quickly and she was now the lively woman she'd always been.

"I know, Care. I'll always be there for you too! Whatever happens, no one will ever come between us."

"Don't forget Bonnie."

"That's in the past, we both know that." Bonnie had been a popular girl on college who deliberately tried to separate Caroline and Elena, and it worked; but only for a few months. They stood away from each other, but in the end, they found their way back and they've been inseparable since then.

"Yeah, she had been a real bitch."

"I still don't get why we both got trapped into her little games? What were we thinking?"

"We just both had a hard time back then, she used that in her advantage. I was having troubles with Matt; you were trying to get Jeremy out of his mess…"

"I'm glad her plan failed. I wouldn't know what to do without you."

"I wouldn't either," Caroline smiled before pulling her into a hug.

Suddenly a cough got their attention and they turned around. "I don't want to disturb the two of you or anything, but Mr. Salvatore has arrived. Now, if you could be so honorable to come into the meeting room," Jane announced frowning.

"Of course, Jane," Elena answered, trying to be friendly.

They waited until she left the room again. "What a bitch," Caroline said when she was out of earshot. "I can't believe she talked to you like that."

"She's never friendly, Caroline. Not even to the other directors, the only one she smiled at was Mr. Lockwood."

"That's just because she wanted to get a raise."

"Probably, but don't let her get under your skin. She's so not worth it."

"Yeah, you're right, she isn't at all."

"So, let's go find out who our new boss is."

"I hope he's hot."

"Caroline, he's your boss!"

"So what, isn't it always easier when you're in good relationship with the chief? I can only imagine what kind of benefits it would provide," Caroline said giggling.

"You can't sleep with our new boss."

"Who said anything about sleeping?"

"What? He needs to be sexy but you're not going to try to seduce him?"

"That's not what I said, if he's really hot…maybe."

"Care, please!"

"Don't act so dull, Elena. You should try something like that…something exciting."

"I don't think seducing your boss is exciting."

"You could change your mind about that one."

"Oh god, I just hope he's so ugly you can't even stand the idea of working with him."

" It won't be a problem for me; you're the one that has to work with him. After all, I'm just your assistant."

"Yeah, thank you for reminding me that."

"No problem. Now let's find out if the new boss he's a hottie or not."

Before Elena could get any more frustrated with her friend she walked out of the office and towards the meeting room. She didn't know why but suddenly she felt really nervous. 'He's just your new boss, Elena,' she told herself. 'There's nothing to worry about, make a good impression and you can go on working like you always do, not a big deal.'

But when she walked in, her heart skipped a beat and she suddenly felt sick. This couldn't possibly be happening. "Damon?" she whispered, not able to get the words out of her throat.

"Ms. Gilbert, this is your new boss Mr. Damon Salvatore," Jane introduced them. "Mr. Salvatore, this is Ms. Elena Gilbert the head of our research department and her assistant Ms. Caroline Forbes."

Elena was totally in shock, frozen to the ground and everything went black.

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><p><strong>I just love to end with this cliffhanger! Although I'm sure you'll wanna know how it goes further. Well, you know what to do to make me write faster! <strong>

**Next chapter you'll get to see how Damon reacts. **

**So, I hope you all liked the chapter! I would hate it to disappoint my readers! **

**Xoxo**

_**Katy Perry, Thinking of you. **_


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I still don't own the vampire diaries. **

* * *

><p><em>Don't you know I've tried and I've tried<br>To get you out my mind  
>But it don't get no better<br>As each day goes by  
>And I'm lost and confused<br>I've got nothing to lose  
>Hope to hear from you soon<br>P.S. I'm still not over you  
>Still not over you<em>

_Excuse me, I really didn't mean to ramble on_  
><em>But there's a lot of feelings that remain since you've been gone<em>  
><em>I guess you thought that I would put it all behind me<em>  
><em>But it seems there's always somethin right there to remind me<em>  
><em>Like a silly joke, or somethin on the t.v.<em>  
><em>Boy it aint easy<em>  
><em>When I hear our song<em>  
><em>I get that same old feeling<em>  
><em>Wish I could press rewind<em>  
><em>Turn back the hands of time<em>  
><em>And I shouldn't be telling you<em>

_._

_._

_._

**Chapter 2:**

"Elena!" she heard someone yell. "Elena, come on, wake up!" The noise came from far away and she wanted to ask it to be quiet but she couldn't. Suddenly her eyes started to open but everything was woozy and she felt kind of dizzy too. One of her hands went straight to her head and she could feel a painful headache taking over.

"Elena?" the voice asked again, she could vaguely recognize it as Caroline's. What happened? She tried to sit up but fell backwards again.

"Easy. I'll help you sit down," the voice said again. She blinked her eyes a few times before everything started to clear up again. Caroline was sitting right in front of her, with a glass of water and she handed it over. Elena drank it up in one gulp, her mind still trying to process what happened. Then everything came rushing back…Damon…Damon Salvatore was her new boss. She never knew his last name...now she did. Her heart skipped a beat again.

She started looking around but the room was empty, where did everyone go? More importantly where did he go?

"They went out to give you some space. I'm sure they'll be back as soon as they know you're awake again. Jesus Elena, you scared the hell out of me. Didn't you eat this morning or what? Why did you faint?" Oops she must have asked her question out loud.

"His name is Damon."

"Yeah, Damon Salvatore, and he is our new boss; why?" Caroline asked confused.

"Damon; as in Damon from my eighteenth birthday, four years ago, remember?"

"Oh my god," Caroline answered when she realized what Elena was talking about. "That was THE Damon? That's why you fainted? Oh my gosh!"

"What do I do now? I can't possibly work with him, not after everything that happened four years ago."

"Why not? You just slept with him; maybe he doesn't even remember you. No big deal."

"Oh I'm sure he does, I could see it in his eyes when I walked in. Besides, I didn't just sleep with him. I also run away like a chicken the next morning when I woke up; and I never saw him again after that." She'd been so confused…

"Yeah, why was that actually?"

"I don't know. I guess I was afraid or something. When I woke up, I just couldn't bear it to face him so running away sounded like the best option then. Never seeing him again seemed like a good plan; or at least, that was back then." Being confronted with the past wasn't exactly what Elena was hoping for today.

"I'm sure you two can work together without any problems. You're very professional Elena, you can handle it."

"But there will always be some kind of weird tension between the two of us. You can't deny that. Besides, I can't act like nothing ever happened cause it did; and I don't want to be reminded of that."

"Why not? You said it yourself that he was amazing."

"Yeah he was. That's the whole problem, even after all those years, I was never able to forget him and now I need to work with him. How can that possible work, Care? I know you're always optimistic but please, think about it!"

"I understand what you mean, Elena. But there's nothing you can do about it. He's our new boss; you're required to work with him. You're not going to resign because of him, are you?"

"Of course not! I'm not going to ruin my career because someone from my past turned up to be my boss."

"Well, there you've your answer."

"This is such a mess. You need to help me, Care. I can't do this by myself."

"Like I told you before, Lena; I'm always here for you, that's what friends are for."

Both girls were smiling at each other when there was a soft knock on the door.

"Yes?" Caroline asked.

The door went open and Jane walked in. "I see Elena's doing better again. Well good, I'll tell Mr. Salvatore you two are ready. That was an amazing introduction by the way, Elena. I'm sure he'll never forget you," Jane said smirking before leaving them alone again.

"I still don't understand how she has the guts to tell you something like that."

"It's just Jane; you don't have to worry about her. She has a big mouth, but that's all," Elena answered, trying to calm down her friend. Ever since she started working here, Jane had been a real bitch to her. Elena suspected the girl was just jealous because she didn't get promoted. After all, Jane had clearly been interested in a job as director, but who didn't?

"But still, she's so annoying. I can't imagine someone actually wanting to date her. She's probably just a lonely virgin with too much sexual frustration."

"Caroline! She's still our colleague. We shouldn't talk about her like that."

"Like she's so friendly to us…I was just joking, by the way."

"Be the better person and don't let her win!"

"Oh, but I won't; I'll take that bitch down, any time," she answered confident.

"I'm sure you will but I think it's better to get ready again. I think I hear voices near the hallway."

"You're right, they're coming back."

Caroline couldn't finish her sentences as the directors started walking in again, with Mr. Salvatore behind them. Elena just took a seat and looked down, avoiding eye contact with her new boss. She was too afraid of what she actually would see in them. Would he be mad cause she left him that morning? Did she hurt him? Maybe he never even thought about her…she needed to stop brooding and focus herself on the meeting. After what happened earlier she couldn't afford to make another bad move.

The meeting went very well and Damon…Mr. Salvatore turned out to be pretty good at his job. He gave everyone orders so they knew exactly what was expected from them. It gave her a relieved feeling, knowing everything would go just fine. With her new orders, she could easily come through the week without seeing him again.

But before she could leave the room, someone called her name. She turned around, only to be standing face to face with her never forgotten stranger. It was the first time she looked him in the eyes today, after their first meeting, and saw, what she was expecting to see. His eyes were cold and there was no emotion in them at all. "Yes, Mr. Salvatore," she heard herself answer.

"I would like to speak to you in person tomorrow. Does ten o'clock suits you?"

She quickly run her agenda through her mind and came to the conclusion she indeed had nothing to do at ten o'clock, her meeting with the new client won't start until after lunch. "It does. But it can't take too long cause I've a meeting around lunch."

"I'm sure we'll be done by then, good bye Ms. Gilbert."

"Good bye Da…Mr. Salvatore," she quickly recovered, her cheeks flushed. After he nodded she turned around and started running to her office. 'Please someone tell me this is all a dream!' she thought. This can't be happening. She wasn't ready to face him tomorrow. Why again did she need to faint? Everything went just fine during the meeting that was of course until he asked to speak with her in person tomorrow. She didn't want to speak to him, she had nothing to say.

"Elena? Are you okay? You look kind of pale," Caroline asked worried when her friend walked in the office.

"I'm fine," she answered shortly, trying to calm herself down. She needed to stay focused and do her job instead of worrying about tomorrow. But then again, what would she do? This situation looked so confusing and hopeless.

"No you're not and don't try to pamper me cause it's not going to work. There's clearly something wrong, besides the fact that you just saw the man you slept with four years ago."

"You surely don't have to remind me. I do remember."

"Come on, Lena, talk to me. What's wrong? What happened? Just a few minutes ago you were a lot calmer than you are now."

"He wants to speak to me in person. We made an appointment for tomorrow morning," she admitted.

"Well that's a good thing, no? Now you two can clear things out so you can work together without any problems?"

"I didn't think about that, but yes, I guess you're right. Maybe it's better to just talk and put the past behind us as soon as possible."

"I'm always right. But why are you so afraid?"

"I just don't know what to say to him. I mean what if he asks why I left for years ago without telling him goodbye? Or without ever even trying to call him?"

"You could always tell him the truth?"

"It's a lot more complicated than that and you know it."

"Elena, you can't hide from your past. Instead you should be happy to be given a chance to see him again."

"Why would I be happy to see him again?"

"Maybe that's why you never forgot about him, because deep down, you always wanted to see him again?"

"How did you know I wanted to see him again?"

"So you do?"

"That's not what I said. I don't know, sometimes…sometimes not…like I said, it's complicated."

"Of course it's complicated. I would be furious if Matt turned out to be my new boss, or worse Tyler."

"Yeah, that was a big mistake too. He was really dangerous. I never got why you ever dated him. He wasn't even friendly."

"Maybe that was what I needed, after Matt I mean."

"Could be true; anyway, what do I do now?"

"Try to stay calm and don't worry about tomorrow. You still have plenty of time to think about what you're going to say, you probably won't sleep tonight so think about it then. Right now, we need to start working before lovely Jane comes asking again what's going on."

"She's probably so curious about why I fainted."

"Probably…maybe she's already asking around if anyone knows something."

"I just hope she doesn't ask Damon questions."

"You mean Mr. Salvatore."

"Right, I'm going to make that mistake a lot of times. I almost did it earlier when I was talking to him."

"You should focus, Lena. Be the cool and emotionless business woman you always are. The one no one can resists, who takes down everyone with just one look. That's the Elena I know, the Elena that got this job without any troubles."

"As hard as I try to be that woman again, it's not working. I'm too confused and nervous right now. I'm totally freaking out inside."

"Not only on the inside, I can see it all over your face that you're all freaking out. It's almost worse than when you found out Jeremy was going to jail."

"I just don't get why this makes me so crazy. He's just another man, after all, nothing special."

"You know well enough that's not true, he's more than just nothing special. He made your birthday worth remembering, he changed you to fun Elena even if it was just for one night."

"Yeah, he kind of did. I'll never forget that one day, one night."

"So, are you going to take my advice and stay calm?"

"I'm going to try to take your advice."

"Well good, let's get back to work, enough of this chit-chat."

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading! So Damon didn't show any emotion at all, the reason why…you'll find it out eventually. In the first chapters he'll stay a little mysterious but I can promise you, you'll get enough to see of him later on. <strong>

**Next chapter Elena will have her meeting with her boss…how will that go? Only one way to find out! ;)**

**Xoxo**

_**Rihanna, P.S. (I'm still not over you)**_


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own the vampire diaries. **

**A/N: First of all I wanna thank everyone who reviewed this story, added it to their alert list or favorite list, you guys are amazing and encouraged me to write this!**

**This chapter didn't go the way I had planned it. Some of you wanted me to write Damon's POV so that's exactly what I did. So, the meeting will be for the next chapter but here you have a look on his thoughts! I hope it doesn't disappoint! **

**Last but not least, I wanna thank my amazing Beta Bibi! Without her this chapter would've never existed. You're so special girl! **

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><p>I guess I should've known<br>It wasn't gonna end okay  
>You're such a troublemaker<br>But I like it just that way

A bomb tick tickin'  
>With neither one of us to blame<br>Just like a countdown ready to blow  
>I sat around a lot<br>And thought about the world without you  
>No matter what you think<br>Everything is not about you  
>You think I'm still hung up on you<br>Well baby it's not true

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**Chapter 3**

His first day as the new CEO went horribly wrong from the beginning. He had been late on one of the most important meetings of his career; thanks to his stupid car that decided to bail on him. He should've known that vintage cars don't come with a trouble-free warranty. Luckily his secretary had picked up her phone so he had been able to let the directors know he'd be an hour late.

When he walked into the conference room his thoughts were still racing through his head. He still had so much work to do. This job was the perfect opportunity to show the world what he's capable of, but it seemed like he was already screwing up. Maybe his dad was right after all, he was a complete waste of space, 'the black sheep of the family' as he used to call him.

He should know better…in his fathers' eyes he will never be as good as his brother. Poor little Stefy that can do no wrong; he mocked. A small smile appeared on his face thinking about his brother. He loved him to death, but old habits die hard; they will always compete against each other.

Suddenly the door flew open and his red headed secretary walked in with two other girls behind her. When she stepped aside he was looking right into the ones and only chocolate brown eyes that haunted him for the past four years. He blinked a few times, to make sure it wasn't another one of his dreams.. She looked even more perfect and beautiful than he remembered. He could see the shock in her bright eyes; she had been expecting this just as much as he did. But before he had the chance to say something, the girl fell down to the floor, like a beautiful lifeless doll. He couldn't do anything else, but stare at her, asking himself how was this possible.

"Mr. Salvatore?" Jane asked quietly, breaking his trance. Couldn't she shut the fuck up for a second and let him process what was happening?

"Hm?" he answered just as quietly, trying to recover from his state of shock. He was freaking out on the inside even if he didn't show it. Of course, he'd seen her name on the list of employees, but he'd thought it was just a coincidence.

"I think it would be better if we leave the room, when Ms. Gilbert wakes up she'll probably need some space. We can come back as soon as she recovers," although her voice was friendly, he could hear the undertone of her words, she was definitely _not_ a friend of Elena's.

'She'll run away when she wakes up!' he wanted to yell at the lady in front of him, but he didn't, he was better than that. He left the room, half dragged by her, afraid that Elena will wake up and leave him…_again_.

That night had meant something to him, it really had; and that wasn't just his 'organ' talking. There had been something special about her, something that even after four years it kept her memory _intact_. He had wanted to know her; to know why was she half drunk and alone in a bar on her 18th birthday. He remembered how he fell asleep with her curled around his body and a _stupid_ smile on his face. His last thought had been to tell her he really liked her, but he decided he'll have time to do that the next day. Only it didn't work like that. He woke up the next morning and she was gone…like she had _never_ been there. No 'see you later', no 'call me sometimes!' just an empty space and a weak trace of Chanel.

He couldn't understand how he got himself into this situation. For days - oh who was he kidding - for months he had wanted nothing more than to see her again and now there she was; wrong time, wrong circumstances, wrong everything. He couldn't work with Elena, not after everything that happened between them. 'Be mature!' He told himself. He'll have to focus on work instead of letting his emotions take over. He had to do everything in his power to stay away from her. This didn't look good, sleeping with his coworker…not an option. But he knew better, his imagination was already breaking free. He couldn't help but imagine her in a beautiful black negligee (like the one she had wore that night); her silky hair falling in waves over her shoulders and a seductive smile on her face…he would take her right here on the desk in the damn conference room. One thing he knew for sure, was that, it _won't_ be easy to keep his distance

The girl was like an addiction, the more you get the more you want. He didn't even dare to think about what would happen if he'd let her in. No, he wasn't going to do such a foolish thing. He was smarter than that. He wasn't going to let her in so she could walk away again, because that was what will happen, he was sure of it. She'll walk away just like she did all those years ago, leaving him utterly alone.

He wondered many times what would've happened if she would've stayed. Could've they been a couple? Or maybe she had been involved with someone else. 'Get over it Salvatore, she didn't like you enough to stay!' he told himself.

No one would ever like him enough to stay, 'been there, done that', didn't work. Every time he tried the 'relationship thing', he had failed completely. In his last relationship, he thought everything was going great…he loved Katherine like he never loved anyone before. He was willing to give up everything for her, he showed her everything he got, opening up to her, but it hadn't been enough. It was never enough; she just left him…like he never meant anything to her, like a stained piece of paper that you no longer have any use of it.

That made him realize he'll never be good enough for anyone, so instead he played the self-serving arrogant pain in the ass role. It truly helped him; behind that wall he could hide from everything; pain, regret, deception, even from getting hurt...most of the times anyway.

He'd always been good at hiding his emotions but today…he almost lost it all over again. It was crazy how the girl achieved in one night what others tried to do his entire lives, break through his walls. On night had been enough for that little girl to leave such a big mark on him. He couldn't let that happen again. He made that same mistake in the past and he already knew it will end badly…for him it will always end badly.

He took a few deep breaths and that allowed him to calm down. He needed this job, he needed to prove to the world that he was worth something and he couldn't let a woman destroy his plans. He couldn't let a brown eyed beauty ruin his dreams, the thing he worked for his entire life, even if she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, even if she moved him in ways that he didn't even understand and even if she was still able to take his breath away, after four fucking years. He needed to focus, be professional, but most of all, he needed to be emotionless. Emotions were a weakness, a weakness he couldn't afford.

The black sheep of the family…pff…his dad would be very surprised if he'll manage to make something from his life, so that was exactly what he needed to do.

"Mr. Salvatore?" he heard a voice call behind him, when he turned around he saw it was Jane, his secretary. He looked at her from head to toe, not bad for a secretary but nothing compared to Elena. Damn it, he had to stop doing that. Thinking about her would only complicate, but she had been so _perfect_…it was almost like, she had been made especially for him. The way her body fitted his so beautifully…he _seriously_ needed to _stop_ doing that, but easier said than done.

_Focus_! The word had to appear in his mind several times before it actually started working. He took another few breaths before looking Jane right in the eyes. Most men would be impressed by her looks, she could look him straight in the eye without even blinking, but it did _nothing_ to him. His body didn't function the way it was supposed to be, he stayed completely cold, not even his signature smirk…_nothing_.

"Yes, Jane?" he said returning to earth. Oh lord, one day he would change in his brooding baby brother.

"According to Ms. Forbes, Ms. Gilbert's feeling better now. We can resume the meeting."

He nodded at his secretary; she was obviously attracted to him. He could see it by the way she acted around him, keeping eye contact, wiggling her ass when she turned around, truth been told, her ass looked rather sexy, but couldn't begin to compare…fucking hell, why couldn't he just stop picturing this girl in his mind? And he tiny body…trembling against his own…

Shaking his head he headed back into the conference room where the rest of the staff was waiting. He must be damned for being in a situation like this.

When he arrived in the conference room he stopped for a second, 'You can do it, Salvatore,' he told himself quietly so nobody could hear him. He pushed her image out of his head; it wasn't worth it, she wasn't worth it…she left. He was going to be his cold and professional self; he was going to blow everyone away with one quick glance. He would impress them, show them who the boss is. But more importantly, he was going to ignore _her_ completely so she'd keep her distance and he could go on with his life.

A part of him wanted to scream he was making the wrong decision, deep down he knew he was making the wrong decision, but his mind wouldn't let him stop from doing it regardless. It was for the best, it was all for the best, he convinced himself, even if it was just an illusion. He had to stick with his plan; it was the only way he would succeed. And after the meeting, he would let her know about his intentions too.

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><p><strong>Well, that's it. An entire chapter in Damon's POV! <strong>

**The next chapter will be written again in Elena's POV like usual. But I hope you liked this one too!**

**I'm sorry if it was a little short but the next one will be longer! I'll try to update soon again!**

**Xoxo**

_**Crush, Selena Gomez. **_


	5. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own the vampire diaries. **

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Why you treat me cold, cold, cold, cold?  
>Why you do me wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong?<br>I was doin' what I had to do  
>And what I did was for me and you<p>

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**Chapter 4:**

During the night, Elena _really,_ didn't sleep well. Just like Caroline predicted, she couldn't stop thinking about Damon. She kept worrying about everything, even though she knew it was stupid it's not like she could've changed a thing about it. What happened in the past will stay there, _forever_. She couldn't turn back time, neither did she want to do it. It would make her future less complicated, for sure, but forgetting about that _one_ night… it was _so_ not worth it. That was her only happy memory from the last few years.

After taking a shower, she _tried_ to eat her breakfast, but she gave up after the first few bites. Instead she took an apple with her so she could eat it during her morning break.

She arrived earlier than usual and almost no one was there yet. Of course, the industrious Jane was an exception. She was already working hard to make a good impression on her new boss. Like someone would notice her… The girl was really too desperate and it showed!

If it wasn't for her good name, Elena would've told the girl she was acting like a complete fool, but she didn't want to ruin her own reputation, she wasn't worth it. Everyone knows her as a professional and cold business woman who works very hard and takes her job very seriously. So what good would it possibly do to tell her what she really thought? Not much, she wasn't going to waste her precious time on someone like Jane.

Half an hour later, Caroline arrived, just on time. "You're early today. Let me guess! You couldn't sleep?" she asked smirking.

"A good morning to you too, Care."

"Well it seems to be. What's wrong with you? Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?"

"More like, I didn't sleep _at all_."

"You need to stop stressing out like that. It's not healthy, Elena." 'Who cares about being healthy?' Elena thought. It wasn't a part of her job, so it was _not_ important. The only thing she needed to focus on was doing her job like she was expected to.

"That's really the last thing I can thing about at the moment."

"Probably, but it's still important. When was the last time you actually had fun and relaxed without worrying about anyone or anything?"

"I think you already know when was the last time I did that."

"No; really?"Caroline asked shocked.

"Yeah, really. My eighteenth birthday was the last time I relaxed without worrying about anyone or anything," Elena answered borrowing her friends' words.

"I think we should do something about that. What do you think; girls' night, tonight?"

"I'm not sure if I'll have time. I still need to work on the new schedule for…"

"No Elena, you don't have to," Caroline interrupted.

"I can't keep delaying it. I need to be there for my employees. I can't just let them down because I'm having too much stress in my life." It was more like… she didn't want to talk about her problems with Caroline. She didn't need a girls' night out to cheer her up. Hell, she didn't need cheering up at all. Her life is perfect the way it was.

"Yes you can. What are the benefits of a stressed out boss? You'd grumpy all day."

"That's not true."

"It isn't?"Okay maybe it was a little true. But no one was complaining about it, right?

"I do my best not to show any of it to my clients and employees."

"But it's still there isn't it?"

"One girls' night isn't going to change that."

"Maybe not, but I want the chance to try. You never know if you don't try."

"I'll think about it, okay? Now I have to go prepare myself for my appointment."

"You mean you need to start brooding again about what you're going to say to _him_?"

"Shut up, Care!" Elena said frustrated. Why couldn't the girl let her alone for one minute, _just one_? She was trying so hard to change the subject back to work.

"Don't get mad…I'm just trying to open your eyes again, get you back into reality."

"I am back to reality," she said one last time before starting her work.

It was almost a quarter for ten when Elena made her way to the office of her boss. She quickly ran to the bathroom to renew her make-up and brush her hair. When she was ready she went to her best friend again. "Good luck, Lena!"

"I'm going to need it."

"Take a positive look at it, after this conversation; you'd probably be done with this unnecessary stress."

"It's not unnecessary and I'm probably not done with him after just one conversation. It'll take a hell of a lot more to clear out this mess."

"Maybe; maybe not. Just go for it, girl."

"I'll do my best," she said giving Caroline a smile before walking straight to _his_ office. Jane immediately looked up from her desk when Elena arrived. She raised an eyebrow before going on with her work again.

"I've an appointment with Mr. Salvatore," Elena interrupted.

She nodded and looked through his agenda; like Elena would be lying. "I see; well Mr. Salvatore is still on the phone so why don't you just sit down over there and wait, I'm sure it won't take long." she said pointing at some seats on the opposite wall. Elena let out a frustrated puff before doing exactly what the girl asked. She really didn't want to wait any longer, she was nervous enough already; the day was just getting worse.

"He certainly dislikes your attitude if he already called you to his office," Jane said smugly while looking at her computer screen. Was the girl enjoying this? Oh, forget she asked that; of course she was.

"Or he wants to congratulate me on my positive attitude, because he dislikes his secretary?" Elena threw back. She was already frustrated enough, she didn't need a complete fool to tell her something about her attitude.

"Of course," she answered mocking. "He loves me."

"You're sure about that?" It was now Elena's turn to raise an eyebrow. The girl clearly didn't know anything about her or Damon for that fact. This was so _not_ worth her time.

"Positive."

"Then why does it look like you're trying to convince yourself more than me?"

"You're a dreamer, Elena. I'm sure you won't work here for much longer."

"Let me guess, you will be thrilled to take my place?"

"Why not? I have everything I need to be a good director." Of course, except the capability to charm the clients and make profit. Otherwise she would probably do great with her massive ego and her unfriendly way she kept treating everyone..

"Then why did they choose me over you?" Elena new that, that would certainly gag her, but that was the point.

"Because they can't see my capability, of course."

"Or because they think you're not good enough." Before Jane could answer again the door of Damon's office flew open. Damn, he looked good today, his hair was a little messy but it looked totally hot with the suit he was wearing. 'Focus, Elena!' she told herself. She couldn't lose her concentration while they needed to talk. Instead of day dreaming about his good looks, she should think about what she would say to him and that was _not_ an easy task.

"Ms. Gilbert, I'm sorry I've kept you waiting. Come on in!" he said cold as ever. She was really getting annoyed with his attitude. He had no reason to be _so_ cold with her.

She gave Jane one last glance before walking inside the room, that girl had a lot to learn about the business world, especially when to talk and when to keep her mouth shut.

"You may take a seat, Ms. Gilbert!" he said flatly when they walked in; still not showing any kind of emotion. His reaction was freaking her out more than it should.

"You wanted to speak to me?" she asked when she sat down, straight to the point. Why else was she here?

"Indeed. I want to clear some things out. First of all, no one has to know we ever met before. It has nothing to do with our jobs. I can work professional if you can. I can easily act like yesterday at that meeting was the first time we met."

"Of course I can. I've no problem with being professional. You can ask Mr. Lockwood, he'll agree."

"I'm sure he will. So far, I heard nothing but good things about you and your assistant."

"Well, then there's no problem," she said while looking him directly in the eyes to prove her point. It was true, Caroline and her were amazing at their jobs, there was no reason to have doubts about it. They were a great team; no put intended.

"Secondly, we never talk about the past. None of that matters anymore."

"I wasn't planning on it."

"Good. That was all I had to say. You can return to your work now." That was all; a conversation that lasted what…a minute?

"Good bye, Mr. Salvatore," she said walking out.

"Good bye, Ms. Gilbert."

She had to do everything in her power to stay calm and stop herself to just yell at him. How could he pretend that nothing ever happened? He just acted like that night had been a big _mistake_ and he didn't wanted to be reminded of it _ever_ again.

'_I can easily act like this is the first time we met', _the words kept replaying in her head, over and over again that she thought she was really hearing him say them again. How did he expect her to do that? She couldn't act like that. It wasn't the first time they met; it was definitely_ not_ the _first_ time they met. The first time they met had been magical and she would never forget that nigh; _never_, because for her it had been special; a memory she was holding on to. Every time she looked at him the only thing she could think about was how perfect it felt to be in his arms; she was remembering his soft touches that had made her body shiver, his sweet, passionate kisses that had left her breathless, his finger tips exploring every inch of her body, leaving a burning sensation behind…she _had_ to _stop_ doing that! She told herself. It was inappropriate and pointless. She would _never_ feel his strong perfect body against her own again, she would _never_ get to experience that _amazing_ sensation, only he had been able to make her feel….

She wished she wouldn't have walked away from him that morning. She should've stayed and sleep with him over and over again. But she chose something else that morning; she chose to walk away from him. So right now she needed to deal with the consequences and let him go. He made it pretty clear she didn't mean a thing to him. He probably never even thought about her, god, maybe he was even happy she run away that morning so he didn't need to be the one to make telling her it was nothing more than a one-night-stand. Because that was what it was, an amazing, beautiful, unforgettable _one-night-stand_.

Every single day that passed, she'd thought about him; about what would've happened if she'd stayed that morning. Would he have wanted her to? She had so many questions, yet no answers and she wasn't going to get any. It was obvious he didn't want to talk about what happened. Not that she could deal with it at the moment, she was too frustrated. She'd been ready to tell him everything, the reason why she left that morning, how she felt that night and more importantly how she couldn't forget him…and then… there he was, with his 'let's _not_ talk about it' attitude. He wanted her to forget what happened and act like she was nothing more than a stranger to him.

Maybe she partly was; they never got to know each other. That night, there was too much passion to just take it slow and get to know one another. They had been so lost in each other that they haven't thought about what they were doing.

Caroline's voice seemed to bring her back to reality. "Earth to Elena?" she said for the millionth time while waving her hand.

"It's there something wrong?" Elena asked confused, she didn't even know she was back in her office. How did she get in here?

"You're asking me if something's wrong? Elena you're really freaking me here. You were totally gone from the world. You didn't even say 'hello' to me when you walked in."

"Sorry, just thinking."

"So, how did it go?" her friend asked curious.

"How did what go?" she asked, not really focusing on the question. She still couldn't believe he'd been so cold…so…

"Seriously Elena; who are you and what have you done with my friend? You're never this confused, not even in crises. Your talk with Damon of course," Caroline interrupted before she could dug deeper into her thoughts.

"Not the way I expected."

"What do you mean? Did he make it that hard on you?"

"Quite the opposite; he just said we should leave the past behind and act like nothing happened. But I can't stop, but feel disappointed because he doesn't even want to talk about it. I mean…I thought that night meant something for him too, but it clearly didn't."

"Are you sure? Did he tell you so?"

"No but why else would he act that way? I mean…he was so cold…he really acted like we never met before. I never noticed that side of him, I only know the passionate side of him but now, I couldn't find any of that. He was just so emotionless. It was weird."

"So he wants to be professional, no mixing business with pleasure. Isn't that what you used to say, or do…or whatever?"

"It still is my priority; except from _you_ of course, but he could've at least talked about it, no?"

"Maybe he wants to make it easier on you this way; by not bringing back the memories you guys share; he's trying to be a competent and professional boss? Doesn't that sound reasonable?"

"Normally I would say you could be right…but I think you aren't. I just think he just doesn't want to be reminded of the big _mistake_ he made four years ago; a mistake that included me."

"Come on Elena, no man thinks a one-night-stand is a mistake. He probably has enjoyed it as much as you did. Having sex with someone is never a mistake; it just makes things more complicated."

"Oh, it is complicated alright. Every time I see him, or think about him…I…"

"In your head you play the night over and over again like a movie?"

"Something like that..."

"That's normal considering it was _the best_ night of your life. I still think a lot about the good moments I had with Matt, even when I know things are more than over between us. We'll never get back together…but we spend a wonderful time together. Moments I will probably never forget."

"Yeah, I'll probably never forget that night. But you're right; I'll have to get over it. The past has to stay the past and I don't have to keep hoping I'll get a happy ending. I made my choice that morning, I can't go back."

"Wow Elena, you really, _really_ like him. I never knew you were so desperately hoping to see him again. I thought you were happy you left that morning, so you didn't need to deal with the consequences."

"I never told you or gave you any reasons to think that, I know, but the truth is, I did think about him, _all the time_. I just never believed I would see him ever again. It was like my little fairytale that is now transforming into a nightmare."

"Now you _did_ see him again and you're disappointed. It's completely understandable, Lena, but it doesn't have to be a nightmare."

"Yeah, it didn't exactly go the way I thought it would. Some part of me believed that that night meant as much for him as it did for me. Guess not."

"You still don't know that for sure. But I can promise you he doesn't regret it. Like I said, a one-night-stand is not a mistake, Elena. I had a lot of one-night-stands after Matt, they surely weren't all as good, but I don't regret them. I had a lot of fun back then. I would do it all over again if I had to."

"That's just your opinion, Care."

"Did someone ever tell you, you're as stubborn as a three years old?"

"I did hear that before."

"They were all right, Lena. You're even worse!"

"Like you're the easiest person to hang with."

"I never said that. I can be a little difficult sometimes…"

"Sometimes?"

"Okay, I'm usually a difficult person but I'm also a good person. You can say what you want, honey."

"Of course you're a good person, you're a wonderful person!"

"Now, how about our girls' night; are you in?"

"Would you take 'no' for an answer?"

"Probably not."

"Okay. You leave me no other choice; we're having a girls' night, tonight."

"We are going to have so much fun together! I already have some great ideas for the night. We can…"

"Don't forget we have to go to work tomorrow! I won't be late again. Jane is already watching me."

"Like you have to worry about Miss. Boor."

"I know, but I think she's up to something. She clearly didn't like the fact I had a meeting with Damon today."

"She's just a pain in the ass."

"Aren't you normally the one that's afraid of her?"

"Not afraid, just sick and annoyed. The girl really drives me crazy sometimes."

"Well, let's grab some lunch before our client arrives."

"Mc Donald's?"

"That's fast food, not a decent lunch."

"Like you have to watch what you eat. You're slim enough."

"It's not healthy…"

"Elena, come on! Didn't we talk about the 'fun you' just now and the fact that you should relax a little? Besides, you just told me today you didn't care if you were healthy or not."

"Okay, okay. Mc Donald's it is."

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><p><strong>Here's the next chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it! They're still acting very cold towards each other but I can promise you it'll change soon enough! ;) <strong>

**Please leave me a review and tell me what you think! **

**Xoxo**

_**Why U treat me so cold**_


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I don't own the vampire diaries.**

**A/N: So a quick update before I go celebrate my birthday, although I first have to go to school too... I wanna thank everyone who has reviewed! You guys are amazing! But the person I should thank the most is my wonderful Beta Bibi! She's been a great help to me during this chapter. If you like the Damon's POV, you should tell her cause she really did all the work! ;) **

_._

_._

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_U Drive Me Crazy_  
><em>Why are you messin with my mind?<em>  
><em>U Drive Me Crazy<em>  
><em>Why are you tellin' all these lies?<em>  
><em>U Drive Me Crazy<em>  
><em>Stop doing all these things to me<em>  
><em>U Drive Me Crazy<em>  
><em>`Cause all I want is to be free<em>

_I'm feelin' weak,_  
><em>I cannot sleep<em>  
><em>My head is burning,<em>  
><em>I feel cold down to my feet<em>  
><em>I wanna yell,<em>  
><em>Somebody help<em>  
><em>Is there a cure for what I've got?<em>  
><em>Somebody tell me<em>

_I need your lovin' face_  
><em>I need your sweet embrace<em>  
><em>`Cause you are my only medicine<em>

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**Chapter 5**

Their girls' night went pretty well and Elena actually did enjoy herself. It had been way too long since the last time she took a time-out and she had missed it. But now she was back at work, her relaxed feeling disappeared completely. She just hoped Damon didn't plan on visiting her today because she was already feeling bad enough. She didn't need another look from him; she still couldn't believe how cold he acted. Did he really forget all those whispers in the night…all those touches…? He made her feel special and now…she just felt like another name on his list that had a 'check' sign on the side.

Although she shouldn't feel bad about it, she was the one that left him that morning after all, not him. If she would've had stayed, things would probably be different now…she should stop worrying about it, it was definitely not healthy. The past was the past and she would never be able to change it. She'd been a fool to think that Damon would still think about her like she thought about him. Why would he?

"Oh come on, miss brooding. When are you finally going to realize that day dreaming isn't going to help you? If you still want the guy, seduce him and stop worrying."

"What?" she asked in disbelief. "You can't be serious? Please tell me you're not serious!"

"Why not? It's obvious that you still want him. Why not just go for it?"

"Are you even hearing yourself right now? He's our boss."

"So? Nothing ever stopped you from going for what you want before, why would that start now?"

"Jesus Caroline! It's not the same."

"No? I think it's exactly the same; you want him so you go after him. Be the predator for once. It's simple like that, Lena."

"Of course, it's so not."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Elena. Though I doubt acting like you do now will help you. You look like you haven't slept in weeks. Wait, you probably haven't!"

"That's exactly how I feel at the moment. So can you please stop lecturing me for a second? You're giving me a headache with your babbling."

"Well, you can at least think about it. Besides, you have to take these files to him. He called a few minutes ago, he needs them before lunch."

"What? I don't want to go. Can't you do it for me?"

"He specifically asked for you. I think he needs to talk to you or something."

"What did I do to deserve this?" Elena asked out loud. He could've talked to her yesterday if he wanted to; but yesterday he had made it pretty clear he didn't want to talk to her, he just wanted for them to act like they've never met before…so why did he needed to talk to her now?

"I don't think it's a bad thing, Lena. Maybe fate wants to give you a hand."

"Fate doesn't want to give me a hand, fate want to fucking ruin my life and my career

"You're way too pessimistic. Now go to the guy and take him the files he needs. You don't have to renew your make-up by the way; you look quite amazing."

"You're so annoying sometimes, you know that?" she asked rolling her eyes. It was so not fate who was doing this. More like the devil himself who wanted to make sure her life was one big joke. Why couldn't she be the lucky girl that has it all, just once? The fairytale princess who gets her prince?

When she walked into the hallway she heard giggles coming from Damon's office. A little curious, Elena tiptoed further until she was able to see where the voices were coming from. Damon and Jane were sitting on his desk, both laughing and giggling; she could feel a sting of jealousy cutting through her body. What the hell was Jane doing in Damon's office? Couldn't the girl just keep her paws of him? But more importantly, why was he flirting with that bitch? She was the most annoying person in the universe; let alone her attitude of 'I'm Miss. Perfect'.

The girl really needed back off or she would stuck her claws in that bitch's neck. She wasn't going to stand by and watch how Jane seduced her Damon. The one and only man that she liked enough to dream about.

"I'm sorry to interrupt," Elena said innocently knocking on the slightly opened door. "But I think you needed these files?" she explained while completely ignoring Jane. That girl wasn't worth even one look from her.

Damon immediately stood up, looking a little embarrassed for the way Elena found him. Jane excused herself and walked back towards her own desk with a million dollar look on her face, leaving the two of them alone. Elena closed the door so they could speak privately.

"You must really like Jane," she concluded softly, not looking him directly in the eyes. She was truly curious about what was going on but she didn't dare to ask. She wouldn't show him how jealous she actually was, it would make her look weak and vulnerable. She didn't do weak nor vulnerable, she was a strong and independent woman, who didn't need a man to take care of her. She could stand on her own, what the hell, she was Elena fucking Gilbert. One of the most successful business women in this town.

"She's definitely a good employee," he said, not answering her curiosity. Now she didn't know a thing; great.

"Sometimes," Elena answered without even thinking. Damn, that did sound jealous.

"You're not friends, I assume?"

"No, we're no friends."

"May I ask you why? She seems to be a very friendly girl."

"Because she's only friendly when she needs something and more importantly, because she wants my job and I'm not going to give it to her." 'Why am I telling this?' She thought confused. Why couldn't she shut up for a minute?

"Why would you assume such thing? From what I've seen, she's very nice. She was really worried about you when you fainted that day." Like she needed to be reminded of that horrible and humiliated day!

"Sure she was."

"Are you jealous of her?" he asked suddenly. She could feel the blood rushing to her head.

"What the hell? Why would I be jealous of that hypocrite? She's jealous of me, not the other way around," she yelled. Way was she reacting this strongly? That was so inappropriate, he was her boss and she was being extraordinary rude to him. "Excuse me, that was just disrespectful of me," she added after taking a deep breath. 'Focus, Lena, focus!'

"Now I do know how you really feel about her, although I don't think it's good for the company. I would like it if you could talk with her, we can't afford discussions between employees, Ms. Gilbert. It's really not professional."

"Are you accusing me of not being professional?"

"I'm not accusing you, Ms. Gilbert. I'm trying to run this company in the better way possible, that's all."

"You can call me Elena, by the way. I don't like being called Ms. Gilbert."

"That's too bad because I think it's not appropriate to call you Elena, Ms. Gilbert."

"Do whatever you want, Da…Mr. Salvatore. Here are the files you needed, I'll return back to work now," she said while turning around and slowly walking towards the door.

"Elena?" he asked, getting her full attention back by using her first name.

"What?" she asked shortly still pissed off by this behavior.

"It was really nice seeing you back after all those years. I'm glad you made something of your life. Although I always knew you had it in you."

She just nodded, as her cheeks were coloring red. Why was he giving her such a sweet compliment after being so cold? Not really able to think clearly she turned around again and started running back to her office.

When she arrived at her desk, she plumped down in her seat and let her head fell backwards. What a hell of a day. She couldn't believe this was happening to her.

Slowly she turned her head towards her friends' desk, already expecting a look that says it all. But Caroline wasn't there. Where did she go? They didn't have any meetings scheduled… probably the toilet.

When she still hasn't returned after a few minutes, Elena was getting suspicions and she decided to send her friend a text. A few minutes later she finally texted back.

Oops, I totally forgot the time, Lena; so sorry. I met this guy Stefan and he asked me if I wanted to join him for dinner. He's so hot! OMG! See ya' later.

Okay, that went well. Now she'll have to grab lunch all on her own. Didn't Caroline tell her they should have more girl time? She was doing a hell of a job with that. Of course, she had to disappear just when she needed her friend the most. After hearing her name came out from his mouth, so sweet, so perfect…all her feelings came back and she suddenly realized he meant more to her than just a one-night-stand. They could've been friends, even lovers…she made such a mistake back then. Why didn't she realize it before? Why hadn't she realized it the morning she woke up in his bed? She could still remember it like it was yesterday. He was lying naked in bed, the sheet curled up so she could see his beautiful chest. He lay there, so peaceful, even cute. It had been the hardest thing she had ever done to walk away that morning. Because she wanted to stay, she really did but she had been too scared to do so. It had been her first one-night-stand and probably her last too.

Soon she realized that she was actually hungry, so she decided to go to the bistro restaurant across the street. Like Caroline said, 'not eating isn't healthy either'. She should force some food in her stomach, she already skipped breakfast.

When she walked in the hallway she bumped right into Damon. Being the usual 'broody Elena' again, she was walking with her head down and she didn't see him coming.

"I'm so sorry," she said looking up, meeting his eyes. She should've kept looking down cause his gaze on her wasn't really relaxing. His eyes were still as beautiful as she could remember; she had memorized them from the first time she saw them and never managed to forget them. They were so bright… blue like the ocean with a little spark in them, just enough to drive her crazy.

* * *

><p>That sound…what was that sound? Oh, yeah, it was his stomach, informing him he didn't eat today. Actually, he didn't eat since yesterday morning; he hasn't been able to with her being so close to him. He couldn't believe he accused her of being unprofessional! He was acting like a kid, trying to upset her and punish her for leaving him four years ago…talking about holding a grudge…. She looked so beautiful, making it hard for him to concentrate on anything. He wanted her; he was a man and she was a woman and he wanted her. Sexual frustration, that's how they call it.<p>

He decided to go to lunch, maybe forcing some proteins in that body of his will make him feel better, because right now he felt like a first class jerk, with girls' problems.

He got out from the office and looked for his secretary to inform her he's going out for lunch, but she wasn't there. He could've sworn Elena had been jealous when she walked in his office earlier and saw Jane in there. He didn't like Jane; she was an attractive woman, but… she was no Elena Gilbert. He was a born flirt, it was his nature, he couldn't help it, that and he needed a distraction, something – someone – to get his mind from Elena at least for a few minutes. Of course it didn't work…while he was looking at Jane all he could think about was: Elena's lips are fuller and softer; Elena's eyes were not green, they were brown, the most perfect and amazing shade of brown; Elena's hair was longer…God, she will drive him crazy!

He was walking down the hall, still deeply lost in his thought when he hit something, wait, make that someone! He took a deep breath, ready to excuse himself and continue his path, but then he recognized the scent…her scent, the scent she left behind when she left him. Then he heard her soft melodic voice apologizing.

* * *

><p>"No problem, Ms. Gilbert. Are you going out for lunch?"<p>

"Yeah; I'm heading to the bistro across the street. They have really delicious food."

"Do you mind if I join you? I've been too busy to actually eat something today."

"Oh…uhm, sure; but only if you call me Elena again, like I told you before, I hate it when someone calls me Ms. Gilbert. And it certainly drives me crazy if that happens when I go out for lunch."

"That works for me, Elena," he winked and smirked at her. Jesus, he was still as gorgeous as four years ago, even better, the whole 'I'm Mr. Successful' was doing wonders for him. Physically he didn't change a bit, but he matured, all that giving him a mysterious air. And his smirk, she could still remember him looking at her like that. The memories returned while they were walking toward the small restaurant. It was probably a bad idea to go together but he was her boss. She couldn't refuse him something plain and simple like going out for lunch together. I wasn't like this was a date or something. It was just lunch, 'stay calm!' she demanded herself, forcing a smile on her lips.

Like a real gentleman he opened the door for her when they arrived at their destination. Even when they weren't talking she was still able to feel the tension between them. It felt like he was a total stranger to her, while they knew each other very well, maybe a little too well to keep just a professional relationship.

"Elena, you should relax! Really, I'm not going to eat you, I'm not that hungry."

She looked at him like he was speaking a foreign language. How the hell did he know she was nervous? He really had a huge influence on her and that scared her.

"I know this whole situation is weird for both of us but we can't change it. You should try to remain professional, and that's not an assault, just a suggestion."

"I am calm and professional," she answered looking to the other side of the room, she couldn't face him, he would immediately see through her; after all, he had been able to see through her since the very first moment they've met.

"Of course you are. I see you're still as stubborn as you were four years ago."

"I thought we were going to forget about the fact that we've met four years ago?" she reminded him. "You were the one that told me to do just that."

"Like I said, still as stubborn," he answered smirking. God she missed the way he looked at her, she missed the way he smiled, the way he moved…she missed everything about him. It was weird, she didn't even know him that well, but she had liked him since the first time she laid eyes on him. He had this sick way to make her feel safe and comfortable.

"Why don't we just order the food and go back to the office?"

"Already sick of me; that soon? Usually you wait until the morning to disappear."That last phrase hit her, taking her by surprise.

So he indeed had been mad at her for leaving that morning. So, she wasn't the only one who regretted what she did that day. "Damon, I really don't want to discuss this with you. Certainly not today, we just started working together. I really want to stay in this company; I'm quite attached to it."

"You're right, I shouldn't have said that. I had no right to insult you, you just did what you thought was for the best."

"Oh, I certainly didn't do what was for the best," she murmured but he didn't hear her.

After they both eat their sandwiches they walked back to the building, the lunch time was already over and they needed to start working again. To her surprise, the lunch actually went very well, with no incidents anyway. After their little discussion they talked about plain things from their lives and she managed to relax again. His sudden change of attitude had surprised her, though she still didn't know where it came from. Yesterday he'd been cold and detached, today he acted totally different. Not that she minded; she was actually very glad they could get to know each other without fighting all the time.

"Do you want to go out for lunch again, tomorrow?" he asked when they were back at her office.

"Are you sure that's a good idea? I mean…after everything that happened in the past."

"I'll tell you once again, Ms. Gilbert, what happened in the past, will stay in the past. We have to stop bringing back memories, that don't matter anymore. It'll only hurt us."

"You're probably right."

"I always am. You should've known that by now."

"Off course, how could I forget?" she asked sarcastically. She always liked him when he acted cocky, it lightened up the mood.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Gilbert," he winked at her once again before walking away.

"Didn't we talk about the 'Ms. Gilbert' thing?"

"We're back at the office, during lunch I'll call you Elena as much as you want, but during work…I'm the boss."

"You're so exaggerating the formal thing."

"And you're underestimating me."

"See you later, Mr. Salvatore," she mocked before closing the door. She was still smiling when she turned around.

"What was that about?" Caroline asked starting at her friend who was now laughing. Oops, she didn't know her friend was back already.

"I'm sorry, Care," Elena attempted to say still giggling. "I just had a wonderful time at lunch."

"So it seems; god, and there I was, worrying about leaving you alone."

"You should! I was in a really bad mood when I found out you were on a lunch date. I needed you!"

"First, it wasn't on a date; second, why are you smiling like you just won the lottery?"

"I decided to go out lunch all by myself when I literally bumped into Damon. He was going out too, so we decided to go together."

"So, things are going better between the two of you?"

"We kinda talked again instead of fighting, so yes, definitely better."

"I really hope this thing between you two will work out. You are kind of cute together."

"Caroline! We're just friends."

"Friends! Since when?"

"Okay, business partners who go to lunch together."

"No, no, that's not what I meant. You're lovers."

"We're so not."

"You slept with him, Lena!"

"Yeah, four years ago! It doesn't mean anything anymore."

"Okay, let's stop this useless discussion we already had, like a million times before; we still have a lot of work to do. Jane just gave me a pile of papers we need to clear out."

"God, couldn't she do it by herself?" Elena asked disappointed when she looked at the papers. There were too many of them…it looked like she was going to work late tonight. Great, she mocked, just what she needed.

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading! Please leave me a review and tell me what you think! <strong>

**Xoxo**

_**U drive me crazy.**_


	7. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: ****I don't own the vampire diaries. **

**A/N: ****Thanks again for the amazing support! You guys keep me going! **

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><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

The first week went by rather quickly. Every day she and Damon went out for lunch together. Caroline wouldn't stop asking questions when they arrived back at the office and afterwards she would get some extra work from Jane. Same old same old, you could say. Although it had been a long time she felt this happy and she couldn't exactly explain why. Being around Damon made her smile…he just had that weird effect on her.

But still, she needed to go home alone, every single night. Some things just never change. When she came home Jeremy was out most of the time; he didn't like being inside after staying in prison for several months. He enjoyed his freedom. She must admit, he was actually doing a great job…he really seemed to mean it this time.

Caroline on the other hand wasn't being a great friend lately. While they promised each other to have more girls' nights again, they were spending less time together. After her 'lunch date' with Stefan, she started spending most of the time with the guy. Although Elena must admit the guy seemed to be making her friend happy and that was all she ever wanted. Turned out Stefan was a Salvatore too, he was Damon's brother and he just started working in the business after he got his diploma.

The phone started ringing and Elena walked towards it to pick it up. It was Saturday and she didn't exactly expect anyone to call her. Usually she spend her weekend working at home, sometimes she went out shopping with Caroline but since she was with Stefan, that wasn't the case. Maybe it was her aunt calling? It been weeks since she last called to check on things.

"Hi," Elena said while answering the phone. She was in a bad mood because she was still unable to sleep well. Since the day he stormed back in her life, presenting himself as her new boss, she couldn't stop thinking about him. Every night, she was dreaming about him, reliving 'that night' in her sleep over and over again. Afterwards she would wake up all sweaty and turned on, thinking about how much of an idiot she was for acting like this.

"Morning, Lena. You sound really tired? Didn't sleep well?"

"Morning, Caroline. Not really, no; how are you doing?"

"Great! I'm shopping with Stefan at the moment; he's really fun to do that with! That's why I called you. He asked if I wanted to invite someone to dinner this eve, are you in?"

"Me?" she asked confused.

"Yeah, why not? You're my best friend and I want you to meet him. Dinner sounds like the perfect opportunity to do that. So what do you say?"

"Where are we going?"

"Oh, we're having dinner at his place. They're Italian, Lena. They know how to cook!" Caroline said enthusiastically.

"They?" Only the word made her shiver, she didn't mean… No, that's not what she meant.

"Yeah, he lives with his brother, duh!"

"Damon will be there too?" Oh my gosh, she did mean it.

"Yes Elena, he will be there too. And don't say you changed your mind because I won't let you! You are coming tonight, even If I'll have to, drag you there myself. Stefan asked him and he didn't mind if we invite you."

"I don't know, Care, I mean…"

"You're coming," she interrupted. "You're not backing off because Damon will be there too. You two go to lunch together every weekday, why not dinner?"

"You know it's not the same. I'm not coming to his place. That's too private and not professional at all. Maybe if we go to a restaurant or something…"

"Bad luck for you, sweetheart, cause you are coming either you want to or not. He wants to cook for me and I'm going to let him."

"Caroline!"

"Shut up, Lena! I'll see you at six. I'll pick you up at your place, bye."

"But…" she could already hear the beep tone. Damnit! Why did she need to have a friend stubborn like that? She didn't want to see Damon tonight. It was bad enough she needed to see him every day at work, not to mention they had lunch together, every day. She still couldn't believe she was actually saying yes every time he was asking her to lunch. The power that man had over her!

Okay, she had to admit, until now, everything went very well. After their little discussion about 'the night', they talked about the usual stuff and she actually had come to enjoy their lunches together. But that didn't mean she would go to his place to have dinner!

One day, they would have that conversation again, the conversation she didn't want to have. She didn't want to admit why she left that morning. She wanted to forget about it, like he told her to, the first time they saw each other again. The day she fainted…god how lame was that! Like Jane said, an amazing introduction…after four years! Thank God Jane didn't know the real reason she fainted because she would've found away to get Elena fired so she could replace her.

That girl was really delusional. Not to mention how funny it had been to see her jealous looks this week, every time she went out with Damon, Jane had looked at her like she was about to kill her and bury her under a tree. Normally she would've just ignored her, but she actually enjoyed it when Jane looked at her like that. It was such a victory. The thing is that, she wasn't the only one. Wherever they decided to go, envious looks were following her and she felt proud to be in the company of a man that could turn the head of every single woman in a room.

So dinner tonight, she should go shopping. Even though her closet was full of clothes, she was sure she wouldn't find the perfect dress in it. She ran towards Jeremy's room and knocked on the door. "Yeah?" she heard him ask.

She half opened the door and stuck her head through the opening. "Jer, I'm going to the city. Do you want to come with me?"

"Are you going out to shop?" he asked confused. His sister never went out alone, not on a Saturday.

"Yeah, but I really don't want to go all by myself …please?" she asked pouting.

"One condition?"

"I probably don't want to hear it, but yeah, what's your condition?"

"I want to bring my new girlfriend with me."

"You've a new girlfriend? How's that possible? You're just out jail?"

"Well…when I was there…"

"She's not a prisoner guard, is she?" Elena interrupted.

"Will you please listen?" he asked annoyed. She nodded. "So when I was in prison, I got letters from a girl. She used to write letters to prisoners so they won't feel so alone during their time in jail. It was some kind of charity project. Anyway, when I got out, I wrote her a letter, asking her if we could meet in real life. And we did that and I really like her Elena, she's different but in a good way."

"What's her name?"

"Anna; she's one year younger than me, but more important, she lives here in the city."

"So what, you guys are dating now?"

"We kinda are, yeah. That's what I wanted to ask. Can I ask her to go with us? That way you can meet her?"

"Sure," she answered before she would go freaking out. He had a girlfriend! Gosh, the girl was probably another drug dealer. She really thought he was doing better, going on the right way! She should call Caroline…oh but she didn't have the time. Damn, what now?

"Elena, she's really not a bad girl," the boy said when he saw his sister looking like she'd just seen a ghost.

"I didn't say that."

"You don't have to; the expression on your face says it all. I promise you, Lena, she's different. I'm almost certain you'll like her."

Elena just nodded, not wanting to fight with her brother. Maybe he was right; there was no reason to doubt that. She hadn't even seen the girl and she already had an opinion ready... and not a good one. She had officially transformed into her paranoid uncle.

"Okay. You can call her and we'll go shopping together."

"You're great, sis," Jeremy said before hugging her. God, this day was getting more awkward with every passing minute.

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><p>It was already five o'clock when Elena returned from her shopping trip with Anna. Her brother had been right; this girl was indeed very different. It looked like for the first time in his life, her brother had actually found a nice girl to date. She was a little shy, but that made her even cuter<p>

"It was very nice meeting you, Anna. We should do this more often," she said smiling when they arrived back to her apartment.

"It indeed was. I'm glad I finally got the opportunity to meet you, Elena. Your brother was right; you're a very special girl. He's lucky to have a sister like you."

"Thank you, Anna. He was right about you too. I'm glad he finally found someone worthy..."

"He had a hard life but I really believe he wants to change. Usually prisoners aren't as friendly as Jer was with me. They hate it when someone sticks their nose into their business."

"Then why do you do it? Why do you write them letters?"

"Because it's all the social contact they have. Most of them won't admit, but they really like getting letters. It's their only contact with the 'outside world' as they call it."

"Yeah, life in prison isn't easy…but I'm glad my brother learned something from it. He really needed a wakeup call. He was fucking up his life; a big time."

"I know and I'm glad he's doing better now. I think he never got over the death of your parents…and Vicky of course."

"It's probably rude to say but he's better off without her. She was nothing more than a bad influence on him."

"I can understand your opinion. Although it wasn't easy for your brother either, knowing your girlfriend died over an overdose."

"Well, I thought that would be enough to make him stop dealing drugs, but…it didn't work that way."

"He was already too far…his problems were too big and he couldn't find the right way to deal with them so he dug himself deeper and deeper into a big hole of nothing. In the end, he just couldn't think clear anymore. Everything became a big confusion; doing something wrong was making him feel good, but he was hurting you and your family. For a time there, making himself feel better had been more important than making any of you happy or proud. He always knew what he was doing was wrong, but he didn't care enough to stop it. Every one of us is fighting our bad part on daily bases in order to do the right thing, for him this fight just wasn't worth it. "

"How do you know so much?"

"Partly because Jeremy told me a lot, but I've always worked with addicted people. I'm studying Psychology, which helps me too of course."

"Psychology? Wow, that has to be difficult. I must say, I'm impressed."

"It's going great. I love it actually."

"So what do you think of Jeremy? Will he get better?"

"Do you want my personal opinion or my opinion as a psychologist?"

"Let's say both."

"Personally, I think he's doing wonderful and I really believe in him. But as a psychologist I have to remind you there's always a big chance he'll start using again. It's a habit…when he doesn't feel good, he gets longing to restart. It's like someone who's addicted to cigarettes when they're emotional they crave a cigarette. They associate the pain and the fear with taking drugs to make it all better, even if it doesn't work like that."

"Okay, so as long as he stays happy, he'll keep up his good behavior?"

"That's a way of saying it to of course."

"Then I suggest you keep dating him," Elena smirked.

"Why, do you think I have a good influence on your brother?"

"An amazing one, I've never seen him happier than the last few week. I thought it was because he had his freedom back, but it looks like it was all you."

"That's not true."

"It definitely is. You shouldn't be surprised about it, you're a great girl. He deserves someone like you."

"Well, thanks I guess."

"You're welcome."

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><p>Damon was circling the room like a lion in a cage. He couldn't believe he just agreed with that. What was he thinking? Oh, yeah, he wasn't; his dick was though. 'You think she'll come here and tell you you've been the best thing that ever happened to her, that she regrets leaving you more than anything she had ever done, and that her life means nothing without you in it?' he asked himself. He let out a short sarcastic laugh and decided it will be better to just leave and come back the next day to be sure they won't cross paths.<p>

"Where do you think you're going?" Stefan asked as soon as he closed the door behind him.

"I'm going _out_ for dinner," he answered.

"No you're not. I want you here; I know you work with Caroline, but I want you to get to know her as my girlfriend, not another one of your employees," Stefan said and Damon rolled his eyes.

The things he does for his brother. He decided that brothers exist for one purpose and one purpose only: to make you do things you really _don't_ want to do.

He will stay and be here for his brother, he will pretend she's just another girl that happens to be his brother's girlfriend' best friend, he will pretend she doesn't make him feel like a horny high school boy and he will pretend they didn't had sex on that couch…twice.

"Ok, I'll stay," he said and Stefan smiled satisfied. If only he knew…

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><p><strong>I know, there's no Delena in it at all…but I'll make it up to you in the next chapter! They'll have dinner together and Caroline will do everything in her power to make her best friend happy again, which of course includes Damon. <strong>

**Let me know if you liked the chapter! **

**Xoxo**


	8. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I don't own the vampire diaries. **

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><p>Watch Me Move When I Loose When I Loose It Hard<br>Get You Off With The Touch Dancing In The Dark  
>You Notice What I'm Wearin'<br>I'm Noticin' You Starin'  
>You Know That I Can Take It To The Next Level Baby<br>Hotter Than The A-list  
>Next One On My Hit List<br>Baby Let Me Blow Your Mind Tonight!

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**Chapter 7**

With every minute passing, she was feeling the nerves getting the best of her. It had been stupid to give in on Caroline's begs. She should've kept her statement of not going instead of letting someone change her mind! She wondered what happened to the stubborn girl she once was…Damon Salvatore happened; she answered with a sad smile on her face. Going to the exact place where it all started wouldn't help her! It would be a disaster, she was sure of it.

"Oh my gosh, you look so damned hot, Lena! Where did you get the dress?" Caroline yelled as she walked in. Elena was wearing a velvet black dress, which was really tight around her body, showing all her sexy curves. It also had a tiny split which made her legs look extra long. She must admit that it was quite a sexy outfit; that together with smoky eyes and high heels made a killing combination. It would certainly make Damon glare at her tonight.

"I bought it today."

"You went shopping without me?" Caroline asked shocked; her friend never went out shopping without her.

"Yeah, you were too busy with your new boyfriend."

"Stefan's not my new boyfriend."

"No? So what is he? You're friend with benefits?"

"We haven't slept together, yet. Let's say he's my new flame?"

"Okay. Are you serious about your relationship with him? I mean, do you want him to be your next boyfriend?" a part of her was whishing she'd say 'no', cause if she was, then she'll have to see Damon more than she already had to; his brother dating her best friend…_not_ a good combination.

"What's it with the twenty questions game? You look nervous, Elena! Try to calm down a bit, for crying out loud, it's _just_ dinner!

"_Just_ dinner…yeah right; dinner with our boss!" she practically yelled at her friend.

"Today, he's not our boss. He's just my friend's brother and he'll be at the same table with us, tonight, no big deal."

"Not for you, but it is for me; it's a _very_ big deal. I've been in his apartment before, remember?"

"Oh right, _the crime scene_, I almost forgot."

"It's not funny! And don't you dare to laugh!" she said feeling her cheeks go pink. How dare her best friend laugh with something as serious as this?

"It's been four years, Elena. Get over it! It's not like you have to go in his bedroom again, the kitchen will be more than enough for tonight." Not a good comment, Elena thought; she could already picture her beautiful knew dress on the kitchen floor and her 'boss' caressing her naked body, placing her on the table…she had to give herself a mental slap to get the mesmerizing image off her mind.

"You really enjoy this, don't you?"

"No Elena, I just think you're overreacting a little. I know you're having a hard time at the moment, but I'm trying to help, okay? I think this is the perfect opportunity to realize everything's going to be just fine. You two can be friends for that matter."

"You did this on purpose, didn't you?" she asked. Of course, why didn't she realized it sooner … this had Caroline written all over it.

"The thought might have crossed my mind."

"Of course," she Elena rolled her eyes and started pacing around the living room. Damnit! Why couldn't she stand up for herself once in a while? She should've told her friend from the beginning that she wasn't going. But no, she had to be the people pleaser she always had been.

"Come on, it's going to be an amazing evening. You'll see! Now, what do you think of my outfit, by the way? I bought it together with Stefan. He said it looked sexy on me."

"It certainly does." It was true; the aquamarine dress Caroline was wearing looked indeed very sexy. It was strapless like hers but it didn't have a split, which was a waste cause it would've looked even better.

"Well, then we're ready to leave," she winked and pulled Elena by the arm towards the front door. It was definitely not a good idea to get close to Damon again but she wouldn't be able to change Caroline's mind. One way or another, that one night would be brought up again and that was exactly what she wanted to avoid. She couldn't lose her job now, who was going to pay the bills? Jeremy was doing better, but he still hadn't found a new job.

"Jesus Elena, you're brooding again. Can you just stop for a minute, please? Have some fun!"

"Hm?"

"Look at me!" Caroline ordered. A little frustrated, Elena did what her friend asked and she looked her in the eye. "What the hell is wrong with you, Lena? I can't even get your attention for one minute."

"I'm sorry, Care. I know I'm a horrible friend at the moment, but I'm just a little confused."

"You're not a horrible friend, you'll never be one. And I understand you're confused, I really do, but you should hold it together, girl! You're not a junior in high school any more. "

"I'll do my best."

"Of course you will, otherwise I'll kick your ass, mark my words, hon!"

Sometimes Caroline could be really annoying, though Elena knew she needed someone like her; someone to push her and help her take a break from time to time. If it wasn't for Caroline, she'd probably stay home the entire day, working like an addict, cause that was what she did when she felt lonely. Most people would think she was a freak, but that was just her way of coping with life. Sometimes it was the only way to really relax, even when she was really stressed.

Ten minutes later they arrived at the apartment; and just like Elena suspected, it was still the same place. She had to do everything in her power to _not_ take the car and run away. All the memories from four years ago floated back into her mind and she closed her eyes for a minute. Her heartbeat changed from fast to faster. She could literally hear it bumping in her ears.

"Elena are you alright?" Caroline asked concerned when she saw how pale her friend looked. Suddenly Elena started to breathe heavily and she looked like she was about to faint any minute. "Calm down!" Caroline yelled, but it didn't really help. It took minutes before Elena started breathing normally again. In the meantime, Caroline took a seat besides Elena, who was now lying on the floor besides the car.

"What the hell happened?" her friend asked concerned.

"I think I just had a panic attack." It was the only explanation she had. A few years ago she'd been through the exact same thing when she heard Jeremy had tried to commit suicide. Luckily, he failed and he was still alive.

"A what? Why would you panic?" she asked even more confused.

"This is the exact apartment I run away from, four years ago. How do you think I feel being back here? It's like I can't breathe anymore and I want to run away. I'm so sorry, but I can't do this. I really can't. This is exactly what I was afraid of."

"Of course you can, you should ban those bad thought and you'll be just fine." Before Elena could even begin to explain to her friend why she just couldn't stay and have dinner with the man she left four years ago, Stefan came walking towards them, a bright smile on his lips.

"Hi Caroline," he said smiling, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "You must be, Elena," he continued as he turned in her direction. He didn't look bad, but compared to his brother…"I'm Stefan." He gave her a handshake and guided them inside before she could say another word. Why was she doing this again? She shouldn't be here; she should've stayed home like she planned on doing. This was so wrong, in so many ways.

Many years ago, she promised herself to never return to this place, knowing she would have to confront with Damon if she did. And now, she broke the promise she made to herself and it sucked. Staying away from him had been hard, but seeing him again, it had been even worse. During their years apart, her feeling for him had grown, but it had been nothing more than a simple memory. Now it was real, she _did_ see him again and here she was, standing in front of his door again. She could no longer pretend like it was just a dream, it was the harsh reality and she needed to face it.

"Wow, this place is huge," Caroline appreciated as she walked in. She had the same disbelief on her face, that Elena had had years ago. When she got the chance to look around herself she noticed that nothing changed during the years. There were some small details, but most of it was still in the same place and it freaked her out more than it should have. It looked like the time had stood still and she could see herself, in the arms of a beautiful blue eyed man again.

"Amazing, isn't it?" she heard someone asked, bringing her back to earth. It was Caroline, so she just nodded, hoping the girl was still talking about the apartment.

"Do you smell that?" Caroline asked overjoyed. She started making her way towards the kitchen, only to find Damon himself, cooking. Elena followed her, not knowing what else to do. She found herself staring at the man who looked absolutely gorgeous cooking. When he caught her eye she quickly looked away; cursing under her breath at the fact that she got caught. After many years, living like a nun, her libido had increased _way_ too much.

"Oh my gosh, you must be an amazing cook, it smells divine," her friend exclaimed when she looked at all the food. It looked incredibly good, which it probably was. He'd never cooked for her before, but she could imagine he was great at it.

"I'm amazing at everything," he winked. "You should ask Elena," he added while looking her straight in the eyes. She immediately caught the meaning behind his words. "She'd seen a lot of my work during the meetings." Of course, that wasn't what he meant… After all, Stefan didn't know what was going on. As much as she hated it, she had to admit, the man was indeed amazing at everything….

"Do you like pasta, Elena?" he asked smirking because her cheeks were totally flushed due to his former statement.

"I actually do, yes."

"Well good, cause I've made an authentic Italian dinner for us tonight. I already know your friend does; Stefan tried to impress her with his cooking skills. Guess what, mine are much better."

"Oh you're on! Stefan is actually an excellent cook," Caroline defended her new 'friend'. It was _so_ going to be her 'boyfriend'.

"Sure he is, but I'm just better."

"And he forgot modest," Elena added rolling her eyes. Could he be more full of himself? That was what she liked about him, that he knew what he's worth, but he didn't need to know that.

The rest of the night went by rather pleasant, everyone ate the delicious pasta Damon made and they talked about the usual stuff. When Stefan started bringing up old memories, Damon excused himself and told the group he was going to start with the dishes.

"Shall I help?" Elena suggested. Hoping he would say 'yes', cause she really didn't want to talk about her past. She didn't want anyone to know about her youth, she had been through a lot and she didn't need anyone's pity.

"If you want to," was his short answer. His mood had changed the minute Stefan brought up the memories about their past and now Elena was very curious about what was so bad that he didn't want to be reminded of.

When they arrived in the kitchen again she heard him let out a loud groan of frustration. He turned around to look her in the face, "I'm sorry Elena, but I really can't do this anymore. I can't keep pretending like I've never met you before cause I have. You being here tonight didn't really help me with that."

"It's okay. I should've stayed home anyway. I told Caroline it was a bad idea to come here tonight, but she didn't want to listen; she pulled up the friendship card…I'm sorry."

"No, that's not what I meant. Of course you can come here; after all, my brother is dating your best friend; they're not 'official' yet, but I think they soon _will_ be. It's just…" He didn't finish his sentence; instead he pulled her closer and brought his lips onto hers. At first, she'd been too shocked to react, but when she realized what they were doing, she kissed him back with all the passion she'd been hiding over the years. When their tongues touched again, it was like a fire flowed through her entire body. She felt like she'd been brought home again, reconnected to her soul. But as sudden as the kiss started, it ended and when they broke apart, she could feel a shiver of coldness going down her spine.

What was she doing? This was definitely _not_ how she planned the evening to go. Hell, she couldn't do this, it was so wrong, in so many ways! She had a job to think about, a brother to take care of. They looked at each other confused, both completely clueless about what just happened. It was like their passion had been taken over for a minute, but she couldn't let this happen. It had been hard enough to leave him that morning, she won't be able to do it again; she couldn't begin an affair with her boss either.

"I'm sorry, I need to go," she mumbled; quickly. She turned around and left him alone, _again_…in the middle of the kitchen. As much as it was hurting her, it was the right thing to do. At least, that was what she kept telling herself on the way home.

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><p><strong>So I hope everyone liked dinner date ;) Please review and let me know what you think of it!<strong>

_**Till the world ends, Britney spears. **_

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><p><strong>So I've been thinking about an idea for a new story. Here's the summary, if anyone's interested, please let me know! If I get enough requests I'll write the story.<strong>

_**Summary :Damon joins the Italian mafia and quickly becomes one of the best. When his boss offers him a mission where he has to kidnap a woman so her husband would pay his debts, he accepts without further questions. That's of course until he sees **_**her**_** name. Will he be able to hand her over? Or will he keep her to himself? **_

****Xoxo****


	9. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: ****I don't own the vampire diaries.**

**A/N: ****A huge thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! You guys are amazing and definitely made my day! ****Also a special thanks to my loyal beta Bibi, I wouldn't know what to do without her!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 8<strong>

Damon stretched his hand and turned off the alarm. He took a deep breath and covered his face with his hands. For the first time in a long time he didn't want to get to work. All he wanted to do was run after Elena and kiss her senseless. Apparently his dick agreed with that statement, becoming even harder than it already was. 'You're not getting any, get over it!' he mumbled. He knew well enough that no other woman would satisfy him; no one but _her_.

He licked his lips at the thought of having her under him right now, the gesture reminding him of their kiss in the kitchen. He could swear he felt her passion burn just as intense as his own. He could still hear her soft moans; the sound repeating in his ears over and over again. There was definitely something about this girl that was pulling him in…something he never felt before he had met her four years ago, or since then.

After a quick, cold shower and a breakfast – if you can call a cereal bar and an apple breakfast, he left for work.

As soon as he got in, he noticed her office was empty. Usually she was there long before him, so the fact that she didn't seem to have stepped in today sent a cold shiver through his body. He decided to ask Caroline about it, since they were friends. He stepped inside his office and asked for Caroline. The young woman came in a few minutes after and told him Elena wasn't feeling well, but Damon seriously doubted that was the reason she wasn't there.

She ran away from him…_again_ and now she was avoiding him…_again_. Only this time he knew how to find her. Did he want to find her? She chose to leave; she'll always leave; for some reason the thought of her leaving made his heart arch.

Cursing under his breath, he picked up his car keys from the desk and stormed out of his office yelling over his shoulder at his secretary that he'll be gone for the day. He didn't care what was the destination, he didn't have one; he just needed to get out of there.

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><p>For the first time in her career she actually reported herself sick. She didn't have the guts to face Damon after what happened during the weekend and she wanted to stay as far away from him as possible. She'd spent the entire Sunday in her bed, hoping she'd wake up from this living nightmare she was having. But it wasn't a nightmare; it was the pure reality she found herself in.<p>

What the hell got into her to kiss him back like she did? She'd been purring in his arms like a cat in heat. She could still feel his lips against hers, still smell him and feel his muscular chest pressed against her breasts, making them come out of her cleavage. It was a lot to take…but worse, she couldn't understand _why_ she did it. Of course she was attracted to him, that was obvious; what straight female wasn't, right? But she couldn't understand, why the pure animal lust? Why the sudden need to feel him against her, above her, inside her…? That couldn't be just because she was attracted to him, she had to feel something more for him, more than just physical attraction.

They were still raw but they were there and she couldn't deny them any longer. She never believed in love at first sight until she'd met Damon. It had been one crazy night, but it had been _unbelievably_ good. The way he was sending chills down her spine just by looking at her; the way he could make her body tremble with a simple touch…she was sure that no one else would ever be able to make her feel like that. He was special in every way, special in a good way, weird, but good. He made her feel alive, but most of all, he made her feel complete in a way she had never felt before.

She could keep telling herself that it would go over, but deep down she knew it was a lie. This wasn't something what would go away; it was something that would stay with her, haunting her for all eternity. The harder she denied it, the worse it got.

Still, it had to end, right here and now. She couldn't go through with it; she couldn't throw away her entire future just because she thinks she's in love, not for a man anyway. Her job meant a lot to her; she worked a lot to get where she was now and she was proud of it and she couldn't afford to lose it just like that. _This_…whatever _this_ was between them had to stop.

Her heart wanted to open up to him, but her mind wouldn't let her; her mind was still keeping the sad memories of what happen last time she opened her heart and let someone in. Love was making people week and she was _not_ week. She was a strong, cold, independent business woman.

Call her a coward; call her whatever you want, but she couldn't just follow her dreams – not when they were about to have this kind of consequences. She wanted to make something with her life; be someone her parents would've been proud of.

She probably should dream about getting married, have kids and a husband to kiss her awake in the morning and massage her feet after a long day of work, but she didn't…at least she didn't use to until she met Damon Salvatore. The last thing she wanted was a man to chance her.

Her phone went off, pulling her out of her thoughts. She didn't want to pick it up. She didn't want to leave, her now 'safe' territory, which was her queen size – way too expensive bed. After spending almost 48 hours in it, she kinda felt comfortable staying there. But a minute later, her phone went off again and she realized that whoever was calling won't stop until she'll pick up. She literally dragged herself by the edge of the bed and picked up her phone.

"Yes?" she answered.

"Jesus Elena! I've been trying to call you for hours now! We're the hell have you been? After you took off without a word on Saturday, I didn't see you anymore. What's wrong?"

"Hi Care. You're actually bothering me at the moment; I'd like to go back to bed. I'll call you when I'm not busy sleeping."

"Come on, you can't seriously be sick! Even if you had the flu, you'll still come to work. There's clearly something wrong and I would like to know what it is and don't try to fool me cause I know you, Elena Gilbert!"

"Really, can't you just leave me alone? I don't want to talk about it, okay?"

"No, it's not okay. You left dinner without a word and now you're trying to avoid me again? Just spill it already."

"It's not that easy, you know? I'm actually having a pretty hard time at the moment and I would love it if you'd just leave me the fuck alone for once!" she knew she was being rude, but there had to be a way to make Caroline shut up.

"Are you hearing yourself right now? I'm not trash, Elena, I'm your friend and I'm trying to do the right thing here!"

"I'm sorry," she answered after she let out a deep breath. It was getting too much, she couldn't handle it anymore. Even though she knew Caroline was doing her best to be a good friend, she didn't want to talk. The only thing she wanted was climb back into bed an hide there for the rest of her life.

"Great. So what's it going to be: are you going to tell me or should I come over during lunch?"

"I'd rather be alone today…tomorrow, this week…actually, _forever_ sounds great!"

"Okay, now you're really freaking me out here. What in the world can be so bad that your acting like this? Nothing happened to Jer right?"

"I kissed Damon," she blurted out without even thinking. Great, now she couldn't end her conversation anymore cause Caroline would feel the need to know all the details. What had she gotten herself into?

"What; when?" She could hear the surprise in her friend's voice. Not that she could blame her, it indeed wasn't a normal thing from her part to do; certainly not after she almost screamed it from the rooftops that she didn't want to see the man _ever_ again.

"Saturday after dinner. It's the reason I left without saying goodbye to you, which I'm sorry for by the way. I never meant to be rude but…I just couldn't stay there anymore. I'm sorry if I brought you in discredit with Stefan."

"No, no, it's okay. But what the hell; I thought you wanted to forget about him?" See? Even her best friend didn't get why she was acting completely out of her mind.

"Yeah, I was intending to do so, but I kinda failed. He just caught me by surprise and the only thing I seemed to be able to do was kiss him back. I mean, how could I not? He's an amazing kisser and… I wanted it to last…I really did…it was strange, but good at the same time. Oh lord; I don't know what to do anymore."

"Oh my god, you're in love with the guy!"

"What?" That caught her attention. A dry feeling came in her mouth, she couldn't love him. It just wasn't possible.

"Jesus, why didn't I see it sooner? You're head over heels in love with him. Of course you wanted it to last forever; you probably kept replaying the scene in your head over and over again."

"So what? That's so not the biggest problem on the moment."

"You should tell him!"

"What?"

"Don't play dumb, Lena. You should tell him you love him."

"First of all, I _don't_ love him, let that be clear. Secondly, I _don't_ want an affair with my boss, I can't lose my job. I love my work and I need the money."

"You don't have to lose your job." Did she seriously mean that? Come on, everyone knew this wouldn't work.

"No? I can't work together with the guy I'm dating. It's not appropriate and the other directors would be dishonored."

"Elena, if you love him, you should go for it; no matter what."

"I _don't_ love him."

"How can you be so sure? From everything I've heard, you clearly are."

"I can't help it that you're seeing things that aren't there."

"Okay, then don't believe me, whatever helps you sleep at night. But let's get this straight, you're staying home today cause you can't face Damon?" That wasn't why she stayed home, right? She really didn't feel well. If she keep repeating it, maybe in the end she would believe it herself!

"I really do feel sick!"

"Love sick?" Of course, it was Caroline she was talking with. She wouldn't give up until she got exactly what she wanted.

"You're just unbelievable! I'm not feeling well; I think I'm getting the flu."

"I think you're just too afraid to face Damon. You don't have to lie to me, Lena. I can understand how you feel but you will have to deal with it and I think the sooner the better."

"Okay, maybe I'm a little afraid. But I can't deal with it right now. I need some time to think and clear things out for myself."

"That's alright. I can cover you for today, but by tomorrow you have to be back to work. Besides, Damon already asked where you were."

"He did?" she asked truly surprised, why would he do that?

"Yes, I told him you weren't feeling well today and you would stay home. Back then I didn't know what was wrong, but I was smart enough to understand it had something to do with him."

"Thanks; I guess."

"Well, goodbye then. I really hope you'll make a decision."

"Oh, I certainly will, the only thing I don't know is if it's going to be the right one."

"Things will work out, Lena. They always do."

"See ya tomorrow!" she said before hanging up.

Was Caroline right? Did she really have feeling for him? No, that couldn't be true. It just couldn't. She'd only known him for a while, besides the fact he had a brother and his mother died when he was only a boy, she didn't know a thing about him; nothing personal.

How could you love someone you didn't know? A part of her did felt for him, she discovered that already long ago. But was it love? She didn't know how to be _in love _with someone. She dated over the years, she did, but she never _fell in love_ with someone. She never gave herself a chance to develop such deep feeling for someone.

She just couldn't bring her to love someone again. Every time she tried it, something happened. Most of the time the people just disappeared or died on her; and there she was, forced to deal with the pain.

When she looked at her alarm, she saw it was already past noon and she hadn't eaten a thing in two days. Maybe she should force some food down her throat; it wasn't like she needed to lose any more weight.

"Lena?" Jeremy asked surprised when she walked in the kitchen. "Why aren't you at work? I didn't know you had a day of?"

"I'm not having a day of, I'm not feeling well."

"Guess it's true, truth been told, you don't look well."

"Thanks a lot, Jer. That was just what I needed," she answered sarcastically. It wasn't like she needed a reminder, she knew she looked like crap, she felt like it too. Staying in bed during the day didn't really give her the vitamins she needed.

"Should I call a doctor?"

"No need to, it'll go over."

"Elena, I really think you should see a doctor. I mean it when I say you don't look good, are you losing weight again? I know you had some eating problems after mom and dad past away, but you can't go back on that road, sis."

"Really Jer, it's nothing. I think I just stress too much, work has been heavy lately." It wasn't an entire lie.

"Then you should ask your boss to give you less work. They can't force you to live like this."

"It's not their fault."

"Okay, now I'm officially worried about you. Either you tell me what's really bothering you or I call a doctor."

"Don't be ridiculous, we're not spending money on a stupid doctor if we don't need one. Life's expensive enough already."

"First of all, a doctor is not needless at the moment. Besides, I've finally found a job so we can afford a doctor without any problem."

"You've got a job?" she asked surprised, secretly happy with the sudden distraction.

"I have."

"So? Are you going to tell me what your new job is?" She was actually really curious about it. It was the first time in years her brother was going into the right direction again.

"I'm working as a designer for a new magazine in town. They were searching someone to draw and design. I applied and got the job."

"Really? That's amazing. I didn't know you still draw."

"Yeah, Anna kinda helped me out with the job haunt; she knew I would like to work as a designer. When she found out I could draw she immediately started searching for the perfect job."

"Well, she did an amazing job with that one. I think it's indeed perfect for you."

"Well, let's hope it is cause I can really use some regularity in my life and a job would be a good place to start."

"I'm sure it is." Since when did her brother get so wise? It was almost like she didn't know him anymore.

"Alright, I've got to go now. Maybe you can stay home but I've to work today."

"Good luck, Jer!" Well, she was really glad her brother found a new job. Maybe this was the perfect opportunity for him to make something from his life. He deserved some happiness after everything he's been through. Anna was really an amazing person, without her Jer would probably still be having troubles.

"Lena, someone's here for you," she heard her brother exclaim from the living room before the door fell in its lock. Who the hell needed her on a Monday morning? Caroline was at work, Jenna knew she would be working at this hour… only one way to find out.

Her heart skipped a beat when she opened the door towards the living room. No, no, this wasn't happening. "What are you doing here?" she heard herself ask out loud.

"Well Elena, since you're not at work and you won't pick up my phone calls. I'd like to know why exactly are you avoiding me."

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><p><strong>Well I hope everyone liked the chapter, it pretty much explained why she run away. But don't worry, she won't keep running! <strong>

**Review and tell me your thoughts... it'll keep me going and make me write faster! ) **

**Xoxo**


	10. Chapter 9

**First of all, I have to say this was definitely not an easy chapter for me to write and I hope it won't disappoint you guys. **

**That said, I'd love to thank everyone who reviewed last chapter, you all made my day! **

**Disclaimer: I still don't own the vampire diaries.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 9<strong>

_Her heart skipped a beat when she opened the door towards the living room. No, no, this wasn't happening. "What are you doing here?" she heard herself ask out loud. _

"_Well Elena, since you're not at work and you won't pick up my phone calls. I'd like to know why exactly you are avoiding me." _

"I'm not avoiding you," she answered simply, not ready to tell him the truth.

"No, then why are you home instead of at work?" he asked, clearly not ready to give up. Why again did he have to be so stubborn?

"Because I'm not feeling well," why couldn't he just believe her like any other guy would do? Why did he even care?

"Saturday you didn't look sick at all," he stated, his eyes piercing into hers. He was too intimidating for her own good.

"Well Damon, sometimes people get sick in one night!" She started to lose her patience. The guy could drive her insane without even trying!

"I'm sorry to break it to you, sweetheart. But I don't believe a word that comes out of your mouth. We both know exactly why you are here instead of at work."

"And why would that be?" She knew it was a dangerous thing to ask, but she was not able to keep her mouth shut at the moment. Always trying to be brave; it was not a good idea when Damon Salvatore was standing in front of you.

A smirk came across his face, "Because you are a coward. After I kissed you Saturday evening you ran away, like you always do and now you're too scared to face me. You didn't know what to do or what to say so you decided to stay home instead of facing reality. Well I'm sorry but I can't let you do so."

"Like you care," she knew it was a lame answer, but for a moment, that was the best she could come up with. He figured her out in less than a week, which was incredibly fearful. No one figured her out, she had built a solid wall around her so no one would see her true feelings.

"Actually Elena, I do. You have work to do. So I would like it if you took a shower, get ready and come to work." Like usual he spoke without showing any emotions at all. He was doing a great job at the whole male dominance thing, but she wouldn't give in, she was stubborn too. He wasn't the only one who could be difficult.

"I told you I don't feel well!"

"Still in denial I see; You can avoid _me_ as much as you want, but the company needs you. You're job is way too important for you to risk losing it."

"You wouldn't fire me," she answered confidently.

"Wouldn't I? It's a dangerous game you're playing Elena."

"Why do you even care about my job? I'm sure the company can go on perfectly without my help."

"We've to talk." His attitude suddenly changed and he looked vulnerable for a moment. But it was gone before she had the chance to be sure it was really there.

"About what? About why I kissed you back? About why I lost my control again?" she snapped.

"We could start by why you left me four years ago," he answered plainly, not showing any emotion, he was very good at hiding the hurt, but she could sense it was there.

"I don't want to talk about that." Okay, now she was acting like a toddler.

"Why's that exactly?" he asked while raising an eyebrow, slightly mad at her for not being honest.

"It wouldn't change anything so it's not worth bringing it up again. Like you said before, it would only hurt the two of us even more."

"You know Elena, I don't get you!" he exclaimed while starting to pace around the small living room. "One minute, you look at me like you want me, the other you're pushing me away. What's wrong with you?" he asked stopping right in front of her.

"I don't know," she whispered back. Suddenly their lips were pressed together and all her thoughts vanished from her mind. He made her feel so many things, she never felt before, so many emotions, everything she ever hid. For a moment, she forgot about everything except his lips that felt perfectly against hers, his tongue that send little electric shocks through her body. For a moment, she let herself get lost, let loose and do what her heart needed the most. Finally feeling like she belonged somewhere.

His hands were everywhere and she realized where this was going. As much as she wanted to deny it, she couldn't anymore; she wanted him more than anything. Without a sign he pulled back and she looked at him confused. "We shouldn't do this," he whimpered softly, more to himself than her.

"You're right we shouldn't," she agreed just as softly. It was the worst thing they could do, but it felt so right, _god_ it felt _amazing_. Before she could register anything his lips were back where they belonged, on hers. They kissed passionate with everything they got, savoring each other's taste like it was the last time they'd see each other. Old, but well remembered feelings came back to the surface and she was turned on more than she should. This man in front of her was a pure drug, an addiction you couldn't fight even if you would want to.

His lips left hers to leave a wet, burning trail down her neck, while his hands were busy removing her clothes. A shiver went through her spine when he squeezed her breasts, perfectly cupping them. She missed this feeling, the feeling of being completely lost in the moment, free like a bird.

In a matter of seconds they were both naked, standing in the middle of the living room. It was a good thing she lived on the 10th floor of the building and no one would be able to see them. He easily picked her up, caring her through the apartment and she lead him to her bedroom. She completely forgot what a mess it was after her two day trip of brooding, but on the moment, she couldn't bring herself to give a damn. She was more interested in the person who was caring her.

She could still remember how amazing he'd been, but actually feeling him again…it was something…quite different. He carefully laid her down on the mattress while crawling up until he was right where he should be. He bend down to kiss her again, but it wasn't a rough or demanding kiss, it was sweet almost tender. "You wouldn't believe how much I missed this," he whispered softly, the flash of a smile came across his face before he entered her. They both let out a loud groan while her walls adjusted to his full erection. He wasn't the only one who missed this. After four years living like a nun without any sex at all, this was even better than she could've wished for.

He started thrusting in and out slowly, making her world spin round and round. She wrapped her legs around his waist, pushing him deeper inside of her with every thrust. She wanted it him to go faster, harder, but she was too far gone to actually be able to announce a word. So instead she started lifting her own hips, meeting his every time while kissing him with passion she didn't even know she had in her. It felt like the oxygen was sucked out the room and she desperately needed her release.

He started to increase his pace; somehow knowing how much she needed him to. The feelings were beyond good while her world shattered into a million pieces. Her climax was intense and strong, making her feel dizzy. She chanted his name over and over again until they both fell apart, amazed by what happened. It was wrong, but it felt right at the same time.

Blame her all you want, but she'll do it all over again if it'll come to that.. He was amazing, _they_ were amazing together. It had been earth shattering and it would always be like that. They just had _something_, something strong, something unbelievable but amazing at the same time. She just had to figure out what exactly was 'it'.

When she met his eyes, she could feel her breath hitch; she found in them the same emotions she had found four yeas ago. It was like…she had been teleported back in time. It looked good on him, he just looked good. She couldn't hide the smile that came across her lips, neither the feeling that came when he smiled back at her. They both went silent for a while, not knowing what to say to each other.

"I'm sorry," she said, meaning it truly, "I'm sorry for leaving you that morning..." He just nodded, not able to answer anything.

"I know it was wrong," she went on, "But I was so scared. I know you probably think I'm a coward now but…I really didn't know what to do. I couldn't handle the reality of it; so instead I ran away, like a chicken." A single tear rolled over her cheek; she couldn't hold it back even though she tried. The emotions were too much, too many; she'd never meant to hurt him, but she clearly had.

Just when she thought she had him all figure out, he surprised her again, by wiping the tear away and pulling her into a hug. She started sobbing against his chest as all her emotion came crawling to the surface, all the hurt, angst, fury, passion. It was too much and she couldn't hold it back anymore. It was the first time she let herself cry since the funeral of her parents and she desperately needed it before she would go crazy.

When she finally calmed down again, she pulled away a little, his arms still around her. "But you have to know I regretted it from the minute I left your apartment. I've always thought about what would've happened if I had stayed but on that moment, it felt like the right thing to do even if it was the worst."

"I believe you," he said simply, making her heart complete again. He would probably never know how much it meant to her that he believed what she said, that he trusted her enough to do so. It was weird how comfortable she felt around him even if they still didn't really know each other. He was still her _beautiful stranger_.

She carefully wrapped her arms around him, still afraid he would push her away, but he didn't and she could feel a tiny smile coming across her face. She kissed him lightly, just enough to drive them both crazy. She wanted this moment to last, be in his arms forever even if it was impossible.

Taking her time, she pushed him down, straddling him. It felt amazing to be in control and she appreciated it even more knowing he wanted this just as much as she did. A feeling of victory went through her while she kissed him deeply, savoring his delicious taste she will never have enough of. Normally she was never the one to take the initiative, but with him everything changed and she felt like she didn't even know herself anymore. He just made her world go crazy, made _her_ go crazy. But she loved every bit of it.

She heard him let out a gasp when she took the tip of his cock in her hand, teasing him a little. Carefully she started stroking him at a painfully slow pace. When he let out a frustrated growl she felt herself actually smile. "Stop the teasing, Elena. You know what I want," he hissed between breaths.

"Oh? And what would that be?" she asked tentatively while the smirk on her face grew a little, she was enjoying this way too much.

Before he could answer her question she speed up drastically, earning a loud moan from him which only managed to turn her on even more, she could feel herself getting wetter with every moan he let out, the little sounds he was making were _way_ to hot for her to remain indifferent. She unconsciously licked her lips before taking the head of his cock into her mouth. His eyes immediately widened and a moan escaped his lips.

She never went down on a man before, but hearing him moan like that gave her the confidence she needed.

His eyes started rotating in his head as she was sucking him off like she'd done this a million times before and it felt unbelievably good. When she started deep-throating him it got too much and he could feel his release coming closer and closer. "I want to be inside you," he managed to whisper between moans.

She let out a chuckle because of how husky he sounded, it was really sweet. But she obeyed and crawled up again to straddle him. "Damon," she moaned when she sunk down onto his rock hard member. He felt unbelievable good inside her, making her complete in more than one way.

When she started bouncing up and down on his shaft they both started breathing heavily, moaning each other's names over and over again. She threw her head back while her orgasm was hovering closer. His hand slipped between their bodies and he searched her 'sweet spot', finding it with ease. Her heart started pounding furiously in her ribcage while her body started to shudder, her nails digging into his back.

He could feel her walls tighten around his cock and it brought him over the edge as well. They both exploded together in a mind blowing climax.

She couldn't differentiate right from wrong anymore. It all came together and ended in a situation like this.

As much as she wanted, _needed_, to stay away from him…she did quite the opposite again. It was like her brains stopped working and her heart took over.

Now she was lying in his arms _again_, in the same situation as years ago, not knowing what to do. Slowly she slipped out of his arms. "Stay a little longer…please," he whimpered, she could hear the desperation in his voice and it surprised her, it really did. But she complied and stayed in his arms, totally losing track of time. Eventually she fell in a deep relaxing sleep, like she hadn't slept in years.

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><p><strong>So, I hope everyone liked it. I think I let you guys wait long enough for this. <strong>

**Please leave me a review and tell me what you think!**

**xoxo**


	11. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I don't own the vampire diaries.**

**A/N: Thank you so much for all the kind reviews! Keep them coming! ;)**

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><p><strong>Chapter 10<strong>

When she woke up, it was already dark outside. She looked besides her only to find a pile of wrinkled sheets. Did Damon go home without saying goodbye? A shoot of pain went straight through her body and she got some kind of '_déjà vu'_ feeling. Had he done this out of revenge to get back at her?

All her dark thoughts disappeared once the door flew open and Damon walked in with a tray of food. What the hell? That was really the last thing she had been expecting.

"Morning Sunshine," he smiled. "Although it's more like good evening."

"What time is it?" she asked while yawning, you'll think she'd slept enough by now.

"Almost eight."

"What?" she asked shocked. "That means…"

"It means you slept for more than five hours, I guess you were exhausted. Although I can imagine why," he winked with a smirk across his face. She just rolled her eyes at his comment.

"Why didn't you wake me up?"

"It was the first time I actually saw you sleeping, the last time you didn't exactly give me a chance to, so I enjoyed watching you." She knew he was referring to the last time they'd slept together and she chose not to bring it up again.

"You stayed here the entire time?" she asked instead.

"I must admit, I did some work while you were sleeping."

"Why didn't you just go back to work?"

"Why; do you want me gone?" he asked suddenly very serious. Oh god, he was probably thinking she wanted to run away again. But not this time, today she would deal with her problems and face them instead of running away. She didn't want to hurt him more than she already did.

"No, Damon, I don't want you gone," she answered a little annoyed. Hadn't she admitted to him she regretted what she did four years ago?

"You don't really look like you like it either."

"I'm just a little confused at the moment, okay? It's a lot to take in."

"Sure. Luckily I am still here so we can talk about it." Again, she could hear the hidden sarcasm behind the words. She'd hurt him big time, that was obvious by now.

"Look Damon," she started while taking his hand in hers, pulling him on the bed with her. "I understand you're still mad at me, I do; but I can't take back what I did; I can't go back in time and change it, not even if I wanted to. I never wanted to hurt you; I didn't do it on purpose I thought you would be relieved that I already left and that you didn't need to deal with the uncomfortable morning after."

"Are you serious? You really thought that?"

She shrugged, "I guess I did. I mean, it was my first one-night-stand…so…yeah, I really thought so." Why the hell was she saying all this?

"To be honest with you, I was furious. I thought it was lame of you to leave without even given me the chance to get the know you. I thought I got over it, but when I saw you back at the office…it brought up some pretty angry feelings. That's why I acted so cold and distant; I didn't want to show you how much you're gesture affected me. I wanted to make you feel like you meant nothing to me, but you did."

"I thought it just meant you'd never thought about me since that night. That it meant nothing to you."

"Oh, I assure you, I've thought about you; _a lot_. I just never thought I would ever see you again."

"Yeah, and then you saw me…faint in front of you."

"You must admit, Elena, it was a pretty good way to reunite."

"Certainly," she said while shaking her head. "I was just so shocked, I didn't know what happened, all I remember is everything going black."

"You probably went through some kind of panic attack."

"It was just so overwhelming. I thought I was dreaming for a moment."

"When I was looking through the names of the employees, I saw 'Elena Gilbert', I thought about you, but I wasn't sure it was really you since I never got your last name."

"Yeah, when I heard of a Mr. Salvatore, it never even occurred to me that it could be you. We didn't really get the time to exchange our full names."

"As much as I'd love to continue our small talk, I really think you should eat a little. You don't look very…healthy." His words made her look into the mirror and saying she didn't look healthy was an understatement, she looked horrible.

"Nah, you're still very attractive," she heard Damon say. Did she say that out loud?

"I should take a shower."

"First eat," he said looking her in the eyes. "Then we can take a shower."

"What?" she asked suddenly back to full attention. "We?"

"You didn't think I was leaving already, did you? I can't let the chance to take a shower with my favorite employee pass."

"Really, Damon; did you have to remind me again? It's bad enough already that I'm having an affair with my boss."

"Like you'd care. As long as I don't fire you, you'll be just fine."

"_So_ not the point. If anyone finds out, they'll want you to fire me and you can't blame them because relationships are forbidden at work. I'm not going to let Jane enjoy my doom."

"Then we'll have to be very careful," he smirked while feeding her some of the food.

She wanted to argue again, but the food was so delicious it made her forget about everything she wanted to say, she closed her eyes and let out a soft moan.

"Elena, you really should stop eating like that or I'll jump you before you've the time to finish your dinner." She looked at him innocently, smirking when she saw the enormous bulge in his pants. Wow, did she turn him on just by eating? She should definitely give herself more credit from now on. .

"It's not funny," he said seriously when he saw the smirk on her face.

"It actually really is. I didn't know I could turn on a guy just by eating."

"Oh, but you can turn someone on just by looking at him." The words came as a shock, did she have such a strong influence on him? She knew they were attracted to each other…okay, okay he could drive her crazy just by looking at her, but…wow. She was lost for words and that didn't happen often.

When she didn't answer he started laughing. "What?" she asked annoyed.

"You're seriously speechless?"

"What? I didn't know I had such an influence on you," she whispered, her cheeks totally flushed. Why was she having this conversation with him? Couldn't they just skip the talking and jump into the shower together?

"You're still so naïf, Lena. It's kinda cute."

"I don't like being called 'cute'. I'm far from cute; you should know that by now." She could see he wanted to make a comment at her words, but when he saw the pure lust in her eyes, he chose to shut up and his lips crashed hers. His kisses were demanding, showing dominance, but she didn't give in so easily, she fought back even if she already knew he would win eventually.

Suddenly she was in his arms and he was caring her towards the bathroom; an excited feeling went through her body at the thought of Damon wet in her shower. She'd missed him so much during all those years and now she was finally getting him back, just the way she wanted to …so desperately.

She couldn't believe how she'd ever been able to walk away from this guy. He was literally amazing, no doubts. He could turn her world upside down, but she loved every bit of it.

When he kissed the curve of her neck she let out a soft purr, she was enjoying this too much, but she couldn't bring herself to actually mind. She would probably bit herself up in a few hours for being so careless, but at the moment, she couldn't seem to find one single reason to stop. Okay, all of this could put her job in danger…but when there was such a gorgeous body pressed against yours…it was sure as hell hard to think clear.

She closed her eyes in pure pleasure while all her emotion started to mix up and she could feel herself literally getting lost, until there was only one thing left, Damon. The blood started pumping through her veins when she felt him nibble seductively at her bottom lip while his hands started to explore lower on her body… When he palmed one of her breast, pitching her sensitive nipple, she inhaled deeply sucking in the oxygen her lunges desperately in need of it.

When she finally found the straight to open her eyes again, she could see they were already standing in the bathroom, right in front of the shower to be exact.

She looked up to meet his eyes, getting even more aroused by seeing the same lust in them that reflected in hers. His arms slowly moved around her body to unclip her bra, the rest of her clothes were still lying across the apartment from the first time they've been . In a matter of seconds they were both naked and more than ready.

Her lips curled into a smile when Damon gave her a hand and lead her into the shower-cabin; she never thought showering could be this much fun. Once under the hot spray of water, he didn't give her much time to progress what was happening before she could feel his hard erection pressed against her lower body. Her knees felt so weak, she was glad his body was supporting her.

He captured her lips again, his tongue exploring her mouth once more. Suddenly she could feel his hands touching her bare thighs and her legs truly started trembling. _'Patience is a virtue,' _she told herself trying to keep a hold on her body, which wasn't particularly working. When his finger dipped into her wet folds she let out a hiss of satisfaction, she couldn't believe she was being this vulnerable, but she couldn't help herself. It was just what he could do to her body…

Very slowly his thumb started rubbing circles around her clit and her desire grew. She could hear him letting out a groan, she must admit it was quite hot and it turned her on even more. She could feel herself getting closer, her world started to fade away and her heart started pumping faster.

"Damon, I need you inside of me, now!" she half demanded, half begged. She couldn't even recognize her own husky voice anymore.

She could feel the tip of his cock at her entrance and he gave her one last smirk before driving into her at full speed. Her head fell back and she started moaning loudly, this was exactly what she needed.

"You're so fucking perfect, Elena, so tight and so wet," he praised while starting a steady pace of thrusting in and out.

It didn't take long before she could feel her muscles tighten around him. He's just too good; in a heartbeat he could make her entire body explode. When he kept slamming inside her, it all got too much and she could see stars shying everywhere while the earth started to shatter around her.

Well that's what you could call a '_mind blowing'_ climax, she thought smiling. When she opened her eyes again she could see she wasn't the only one who was having trouble breathing. He looked so beautiful at the moment and she completely forgot about everything while standing there in his arms.

She could feel his body tense up for a moment when she started leaving butterfly kisses on his chest, but she couldn't seem to keep her hands of him. Although she knew it was probably better to let him go before it was too late, her heart shut out her brains some way, and all she could think about was _here_ and _now_, without regrets.

During the past years, she'd thought so much about him, she just wasn't ready to let him go yet. She had broken her own heart by leaving him the first time; she didn't know how the hell she would be able to do it a second time…

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><p><strong>Well, I hope you didn't get confused…but Elena still thinks a real relationship with Damon isn't possible so she wants to try to push him away again, but she doesn't know how anymore. After being back together, she can't seem to find the guts to tell him 'no'.<strong>

**So, I hope you all understand it now, if you've questions, feel free to ask!**

**Leave a review and let me know what you think of the chapter!**

**Xoxo**


	12. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own the vampire diaries. **

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><p><strong>Chapter 11<strong>

"As much as I would love to stay in bed with you, we really have to get to work. We're already more than an hour late," Damon said sweetly, while brushing a lock of hair out of her face. After their shower they'd spent some extra time in bed together, totally losing track of time.

Caroline was going to kill her if she won't show up today, so she knew she had no other choice than give in and go back to work. "We really have to?" she asked pouting, an extra hour wouldn't harm, right?

"Yes Elena, we really have to. It's bad enough I took off so early yesterday, I'm still the CEO, they expect me to be at work, not in bed with one of my directors," he added winking.

"You're truly enjoying this aren't you?" she accused.

"Of course, you're quite a tiger in bed, honey."

"You know well enough what I mean and wipe that smirk off your face, it's irritating me!"

"You must admit, your reaction is quite funny."

"No, it's not! I'm serious, Damon! If anyone finds out about this we're both in big trouble!"

"Then we just have to be a little careful? No need to worry."

"I really don't understand how can you can be so calm."

"Because freaking out will not help us," He had a point. It would only help them make mistakes…still, she couldn't just sit down and act like nothing was going on. She was sleeping with her boss, for god sake! Her entire career would be ruined if it came out, everyone would be disgusted. How the hell could she stay calm?

"Just try to calm down, a little, will you? You'll see everything will be just fine," he said while pulling her into a hug. "It'll be fine," he repeated softly and suddenly she could feel her body relax again. It was weird, how he could change her emotions so easily, but it turned out quite useful too.

"They're going to suspect something if we arrive together," she started after a few minutes; definitely calmer.

"Then we'll have to arrive at a different time. You probably should go first. Jane will be mad enough already."

"Like I mind what that bitch thinks of me."

"Why exactly can't you stand her?"

"There are a lot of reasons; the fact that you don't get it is one of them." Really, why all men have to be so blind? Jane and her little tricks… one day, she would make sure the girl got exactly what she deserved, and that was _so _not a promotion.

"What do you mean?"

"She always wraps men around that little fat finger of hers while she treats us like crap."

"Are you jealous?" he suddenly asked, surprising her with his question.

"Of course not!" she answered a little bit too quickly; she could already see the smirk showing across his face. "I just don't like her as a person. I know she wants my job and I'm not going to give it to her."

"You think she's going to try to bring you down?"

"Well, let's say if she finds an opportunity to…right know she has in fact the chance to get me fired."

"I won't let that happen."

"There will be nothing you can do about it, Damon. You may be the CEO, the shareholders will have the last word in a case like this. They will force you to fire me."

"Then we've to make sure it'll never comes that far."

"This is really not a good idea," she said while pulling away from his the safely nest his arms provided.

"You're not going to walk away again, are you?"

"A part of me doesn't want to run away from this, but the other part…I'm not sure what I want. I'm not ready for a relationship, it feels like it's too soon."

He just nodded, but she could see the disappointment in his eyes. Did he really want a relationship with her? No, he probably just wanted to have an affair, someone to play around with. Normally she would be disgusted by the thought, but with him, it just all seemed so different.

"I'll see you later today?" he asked, looking her directly in the eye. She could feel little sparks going through the air.

"Sure," she smiled before giving him one last kiss. To her surprise, he didn't take advantage of the moment, was he really that disappointed? She asked herself quietly. Did it really matter that much? She didn't want to hurt him again, but she had to be honest with him, she couldn't give him too much hope.

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><p>Half an hour later she arrived at work, she saw Jane waving at her from a distance. "Where the hell have you been, Gilbert? I already called you twice today! If you're sick you've to inform me."<p>

"I'm not in the mood Jane so why won't you just shut the fuck up?" she exclaimed while walking past the desk towards her own office, completely ignoring the secretary. After all, it wasn't like the girl had been kind to her either.

"You think you're clever, hm?" She heard Jane yell behind her, but she didn't even look back. The girl didn't deserve her kindness. She should be happy she still had a job.

When she walked in the office, she noticed Caroline looking up from her computer with big doe eyes, begging her to tell her the truth without words. "Hi Elena; let me guess, you didn't hear your alarm going off? Or were you to busy with entertaining your guest to check the time?" her friend asked plainly.

"What the hell are you talking about?" she heard herself ask, oh no, no, this wasn't happening. No one could find out!

"So I was right, hm? Of course, why haven't I thought about it before."

"What do you mean?"

"I was just fooling around, Elena. But it's true? Damon did come over yesterday?"

"Yes, he did. But you can't tell anyone!" she quickly added.

"My lips are sealed, don't worry. Now, I know why he asked your address."

"He what? You!"

"What? You should blame yourself! If you had come to work he wouldn't have felt the need to come and check on you!" she retorted.

"I wasn't feeling well!"

"No Elena, you were hiding because you couldn't face him after you kissed him. So, Ready to tell me what really happened yesterday? The entire truth, please!"

"I can't tell you, Care."

"What do you mean, you _can't_ tell me?" the woman asked offended.

"The less people know, the better."

"I'm your best friend, Lena, I should know about something as important as this. So, what happened? Did you kiss him again?" Sometimes Caroline could be so annoying…and curious! Luckily they're friends since kindergarten, or she would've just walked away.

"He came searching me, like you already know it happened. When he arrived he told me I should come back to work. After that we kinda started arguing and ended up in bed together," she said, giving the short story without details. The entire time she'd been staring at the floor, she couldn't face her friend while she was telling this…it was already embarrassing enough. How dumb do you have to be to start an affair with your boss; even when the man in question is hotter than hell?

"Wait, you what?" Caroline asked in horror.

"Yes Care, we slept together! Happy?"

"You're not serious, right? You really did it?"

"What?"

"I just never thought you had the guts to actually sleep with him again. And details, please! How was it?"

"Heavenly; I don't know…it felt like coming home again."

"You talk like you're telling a romantic novel."

"Of course," She wasn't telling it like that, right? To tell a romantic novel you've to be in love, she wasn't…so…no, she _wasn't_ in love.

"What? You really do. It's cute, though. But it's so obvious you're in love with him. Why don't you two just start a relationship?"

"It's not that easy and you know it! First of all, I'm not in love with him and secondly, I don't want a relationship. I'm a business woman, not a housewife."

"Really Elena, you're still going to deny the fact that you want to have a family? Cause it's quite obvious if you ask me."

"I can't lose anyone else anymore, Caroline. Having a family would be giving someone the opportunity to hurt me again, to lose people I love, I'm not ready for that. I don't know what I would do if I'll lose another person in my life."

"I get that you don't want to lose someone, honey, I do. But you've lived in an illusion of happiness for years. You smiled at people, but your smile never reached your eyes. You weren't really happy, you just wanted to show everyone you wore, but deep down, you felt lonely."

"It's not an illusion, I am happy." She was happy, she had a good job…and a good job…did she already mention her job? Oh god, she was indeed hopeless.

"Yeah, because you're sharing your bed with Damon Salvatore."

"That's not true! I was happy before I saw him again!" Like hell she was, but she wouldn't admit it.

"You were not. You were a wreck that could fall apart any moment."

"Give me a break, you can't seriously mean that! It's not because I was living a calm and quiet life that I was unhappy."

"Come on, you're a party animal Elena, someone who loves to fool around and be adventures…you weren't happy. You pretended to be. There's a difference."

"So? I never made a problem out of it." Maybe she couldn't deny it that she was living a boring life, but she sure as hell wasn't going to admit she was unhappy. That would be a lie, right?

"No, but deep down, you wanted things to change. And don't tell me that's a lie cause we both know it's not."

"Let's just stop this discussion, alright? I have enough problems already."

"It's weird, you look miserable, but you've got a glance of happiness washing over you, at the same time. You really enjoyed your night, didn't you?"

"It was amazing. I know it was the wrong thing to do, but it felt so right! It felt unbelievably good. I just couldn't bring myself to end it."

"You should let your heart speak, Elena. I know you don't believe me and all, but you do have feelings for the guy. You should let him in. I know it gives him a chance to hurt you, but eventually you'll get hurt anyway. You can't keep hiding from your feelings, Elena!"

"As long as I'm not sure what I feel, I'm not going to tell him a thing. And even if I would love him…I'm not ready for a relationship, Care. I can't handle the thought of losing someone else, and you can say what you want, but I would lose him eventually! I lost everyone I loved except for Jeremy and you! Even Jenna left town, I know it was the right thing to do, she deserves happiness, but it doesn't change the fact that I almost never see her."

"But…"

"No Caroline, you don't get it! The only family I have left are Jeremy and my aunt. My birth parents are death, my adoption parents are death, even all my grandparents are death. I've no one left but them."

"You have me?" she said softly, it was more a question than a statement.

"I know, and I'm really happy about that, I am. But it's not the same. You're my best friend and I love you, but you're not related to me."

Before they could end their discussion the phone rang and Elena answered it, not bothering if Caroline wanted to continue the conversation or not. She wasn't in the mood anymore. "Gilbert, someone wants to speak to you," she heard Jane state.

"You can put them through," she answered shortly. Who the hell wanted to talk to her while she was working? It wasn't like she had any friends besides Caroline. God, she really was boring.

"Elena…I've…some…bad…news," she heard someone sobbing on the other side of the line, she recognized Anna's voice and she immediately started panicking.

"What do you mean Anna what happened?" she heard herself exclaim while her eyes widened. Caroline immediately came walking to her desk so she could hear the conversation.

"It's…it's Jer. He's…been in a car accident….it was terrible…I didn't know what to do…and now…I dunno what to do anymore…you've to come Elena! He needs you!" she said while her voice broke down.

"What? He had an accident? Where are you?"

"We just arrived at the hospital with the ambulance but they wouldn't let me pass. I have to stay in the waiting room…please…I don't…"

"Central hospital?"

"Yes *sob* that's where *sob* we are."

"I'll be there in a minute," Elena answered quickly before hanging up, jumping of her chair and running to the peg to take her coat. When she turned around again Caroline was right in front of her.

"I'll take care of the business," she nodded before Elena could ask a question. "Now, go…hop!" She pulled her friend into a quick hug before running towards the door.

There was only one thing on her mind: I can't lose him too. She started running as fast as she could. She wouldn't let him down, she would do everything to save her baby brother. She may be the reason her parents died, but not her brother, he had to be saved; he was just a kid.

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><p><strong>She still blames herself for the death of her adopted parents, cause they died in the car accident and she didn't. After her adopted parents died, she found out they weren't her birth parents, but by the time she found John and Isobel, they were death too. I hope you all understand it now. More details will come in the next chapters.<strong>

**I hope you all liked the chapter and please don't hate me too much for doing that to Jeremy... **

**Leave me a review and tell me what you think!**

**xoxo**


	13. Chapter 12

**A/N:**** I struggled a lot with this chapter, but I hope it turned out fine. Thanks to the help and support of my great beta Bibi I could finish this chapter, she's really incredible! ;) **

**Last chapter I didn't get as much reviews as usual so I hope everyone's still liking the story. If not, and you got bored or something, please let me know! **

**Anyway, enough of my talking, enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer:**** Nope, I still don't own the vampire diaries. **

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><p><strong>Chapter 12<strong>

It had been four hours! Four fucking hours! And still, they were operating her brother. She was sitting in the waiting room with Anna by her side, biting nervously on her nails before she started to pace around the colorless room again.

The doctors had told them her brother had been in an incredibly dangerous accident and he needed surgery. That's all they knew; four hours later, still, no doctor or anyone to tell her the relieving news that he was okay. She couldn't stand the thought that he might not be okay. What would she do? She couldn't lose him! She'd lost so many people already. It wasn't fair. Life wasn't fair.

It all started on her sixteenth birthday. Together with some friend they went out to a party but she hadn't told her parents. She lied to them and told them she was going go to a sleepover at Caroline's. But that's not where she went; instead she went to the pool party. When her parents found out where she was they've been furious and they called her to tell her they would come and get her. She'd been so embarrassed that they wouldn't let her stay there.

Elena hadn't exactly been thrilled to see them. She'd started shouting horrible things at them, telling them that they were the worst parents a girl could have, which of course was a huge lie. She loved them, they were her parents.

It was a rainy night and their car had started slipping on the bridge and landed into the cold water on the way home. Sheriff Forbes was just on her way to the station when the accident happened and she'd tried to save them, but after she'd gotten Elena out of the water it was already too late for her parents.

She'd been so depressed after they passed and not just because she just lost her parents, but also because, the last thing she told them was that she hated them. She didn't' of course she didn't. No child hates his parents, they just pretend they do, because they think that makes them cool, to rebel against them. She loved them with her whole heart and soul, they meant everything to her. And yes, she blamed herself; if it hadn't been for her, her parents would've stayed home and the accident would've never happened. More importantly, she was still alive and they weren't and it was all her fault!

A month later she'd found out they weren't her birth parents and she'd been devastated.

After a long search, she'd finally found the address of her real mother and she went looking for her. But when she arrived at the house, no one was there. According to the neighbor, her real mother died from cancer and her husband had attempted suicide after losing his wife. After a few talks with a psychologist they'd send him to an institution so they would be able to help him, but it didn't work and he started feeling worse. After only a week in the clinic, the head nurse found his lifeless body lying on the floor.

She'd been broken, her entire world had shattered around her and she'd lost her will to live. It was then the moment her problems had started for real, she'd lost her appetite, which led to massive weight loss, which led to sickness. It took her two full years to conquer her 'disease'. But even today, she still had to fight the urge to just skip all her dinners.

Her life had been so tough, but she'd done everything to get better, to start fresh and make her life worth living. But what was she going to do now? What if Jeremy won't get better? What if he won't survive this? She couldn't live without him, he'd been her last hope, the last person she'd let into her life. She couldn't lose her brother, it just wasn't possible.

"Miss Gilbert?" she suddenly heard someone asking.

She turned around to see a male doctor standing in front of her; he was wearing one of those creepy white coats that always scared her when she was little. "Yes?" she asked afraid. What if he was going to tell her that her brother…that he…he…

Before she could end her thoughts the doctor spoke again, his voice serious and controlled. "I'm afraid I don't have good news." She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes, ready to roll over her face. He didn't have good news for her…her brother wasn't just going to be fine. Fucking hell! Her stupid life was falling apart all over again.

"Your brother did survive the accident." She immediately felt relieved, he was still alive. "But…" Oh god, that was the last word she wanted to hear, he was alive that was good, she didn't need more…she didn't need 'but'. He had to be okay, he just had to. She hated buts…she truly did and certainly when a doctor used the word.

"I'm afraid we don't know if he'll wake up again," the doctor ended. He let a hand on her shoulder to calm her down, but she pulled away immediately, like she could've caught a mortal virus by his touch.

"What do you mean? You don't know if he's going to wake up?" she almost yelled, the fury welling up in her body. She'd kill the one that was responsible for this…that doctor may hope he did his job well otherwise…

"Your brother had a terrible accident, Miss Gilbert. After the surgery he went into a deep coma and we're not sure he'll ever wake up from it again. Even when he'll wake up…we can't be sure how big the damage of his brains will be."

"What if he doesn't wake up?" she tried to control her voice, but it didn't work. The tears were already rolling down her face.

"Well, we can't be sure until the moment it happens, but you should prepare yourself if he does wake up. It is possible that his brain had been completely damaged which would make him more or less a vegetable; or partial brain damage, like forgot how to speak or walk. Also memory loss it's pretty common in these cases." The doctor explained and the truth hit her like a truck and she couldn't stop the tears from rolling down even harder. She could feel her breath accelerate to the point where she thought she'll stop breathing all along and a panic attack had started. She knew it was a panic attack cause she got them frequently. Her heart started to go in overdrive and she knew she had to calm down, but she was unable to catch her breath.

"You've to calm down, ma'am. Try to breath normally…inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…" the doctor started repeating the words on the right tempo and very slowly, her breathing started to become normal again. She could still feel the blood rushing through her veins, but she didn't faint, not like the last time.

Very slowly she started to calm down and she tried to look at Anna who was now shaking violently herself. "Oh my gosh Elena, are you okay?" the girl asked worried, immediately giving her a hug when she nodded she was okay.

"Do you have these often?" the doctor asked from behind her. She didn't even know he was still there.

"Sometimes. When I panic I usually faint."

"It's not healthy, Miss. When did you have your last check up?"

"It's been a while," she admitted. She hated hospitals; she only went to a doctor when she was sick to death, which thank God, hadn't happened in quite awhile.

"I think it would be for the best if we'd check you today. If everything's alright you've no reason to be afraid."

"Sure. It won't harm me." Today was not a day to be afraid… she had to be strong for her little brother.

"Indeed. Good. Now I've another question, do you have a lot of stress in your everyday life?"

She shrugged, "Maybe a little." That was the biggest lie ever.

"Well, I think that's your biggest problem, Miss Gilbert. The attacks will come more frequently if you don't stop stressing out. I'm sure you've your reasons, but I think it would be a good idea to talk with a psychologist."

"What?" she asked shocked. She didn't want to go to a psychologist; it reminded her too much about the past and the death of her parents. When her eating disorder had started, Jenna had forced her to go see a psychologist and she had hated it from day one. She hated talking about what happened, over and over again, it always ended with tears.

"It's just a suggestion, ma'am. Well I have to go now," the doctor announced.

"Can I see him?"

"Of course, but no more than two visitors a time."

"Sure," she answered quickly before pulling Anna with her towards the hospital room where Jeremy was 'sleeping'.

She silently opened the door and peered through the opening, her brother was lying there so peacefully. If it weren't been for the scares, you wouldn't guess he's been in a car accident.

"My sweet baby brother," she said softly, starting to sob. She moved a little closer and took his hand in hers, caressing the back of it.

"I can't believe it really happened," she heard Anna say in the background.

"I can't believe it either, everything was going so well."

"From what I've heard, it wasn't even his fault. The other driver was drunk when he hit Jeremy."

"What happened to the driver?" Elena asked suddenly very mad.

"He died after his car hit a tree. I suppose the impact was fatal."

Elena just nodded, still shocked by what happened. Her brother was hurt and she couldn't fix it. She couldn't do anything, she was helpless. She felt like a terrible sister for not protecting him, it should've been her in that car, not her little brother. It was all her fault.

Why was she still alive while all the people she loved died? Would Caroline be the next one? Or Jenna?

She couldn't let that happen, she had to do something about it. She…

"Elena? Are you alright?" she heard a voice behind her ask. Even between her own sobs she could still recognize _his_ voice.

She turned around and pulled him into an embrace, sobbing now heavily against his chest, like he was the last thing that would keep her standing.

"Shh, it will be okay."

"No, it won't! It won't, Damon!" she yelled, looking at her feet. "My brother…"

"Elena, you've to stay strong. Your brother needs you," he whispered before kissing her hair softly.

She let herself relax in his strong arms, feeling better already. She wasn't in this alone; she did have someone to help her…although she didn't know if she wanted someone. What if she would lose him too? What if he would be the next person she'll lose?

She couldn't let him in, she couldn't take his love. She would sign his destiny by loving him, cause he would die on her sooner or later …everyone did.

He was the best thing that ever happened to her, but she had to let him go, she needed to. There was no other option and she knew it.

She let go of him and stepped out of their embrace, leaving him alone, she ran off. She ran and ran, through the hospital hallways without looking back. She had to get out of there before anything terrible would happen.

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><p>He stood there, not knowing what to do. When he'd heard something had happened to Elena's brother he'd immediately left the office to find her. He knew how devastated she would be and he wanted to help her so badly.<p>

When he walked in and saw her crying, his heart ached. He wanted to make it all better, so he had been happy when she hugged him. He wanted to comfort her, tell her it would be alright, but she didn't listen…she was too far gone in her own thoughts already. And all he could do was watch.

Then she ran away and he had no idea what to do. Should he run after her? Should he leave her alone and give her some time to progress what happened? He had no clue at all. She was so hard to figure out, even now he still didn't know her well enough to be sure what would be the right thing to do.

This morning, she'd looked so happy… thinking he was responsible for that happiness affected him more than it should have. He'd felt proud knowing he could make her so happy. Even if she wasn't ready for a relationship, he knew they had something and he won't let her go. This time he will fight for her, he won't give her the chance to run away again.

After she'd run away he had been so pissed off, but on the moment it didn't matter anymore. Even after what happened in the past, he still wanted to get to know her, find out who she really was. He was starting to like her, a lot.

But now, he didn't know what to do. He wanted to give her space, wanted to do what was best for her…but what was for the best? Going after her would probably only make things worse. She would start yelling again and push him further away. So what was the point of making her even more furious? Maybe by tomorrow she'd cool down.

"Mr. Salvatore?" a voice asked from behind him. When he turned around he saw his employee Caroline standing a few steps in front of him. He was actually glad to see her, maybe she knew what he had to do.

"Hello Caroline," he answered politely, deliberately not using her full name, she was here as a friend of Elena, not as an employee.

"Where's Lena? Did she already left?" the girl asked surprised.

"She just took off. I think she needs some time alone, she was pretty upset."

"I can imagine. I just heard Jer isn't doing that well."

"From what the doctors have told me, it looks like he'll probably have brain damage for the rest of his life when he wakes up again…if he wakes up again." He whispered; it just seemed that if would've said that louder it would've sounded more painful.

"Yeah, I heard the same thing. Elena's probably falling apart at the moment, she had already lost so many people."

He nodded. "I only know her parents are dead."

"You'll probably have to ask her if you want to know more about the story."

"Of course." He understood she was a loyal friend, and he was glad, Elena needed someone like her.

"What are you going to do?" she asked curiously. Well good question, he thought sadly. He didn't have a clue.

"To be honest with you, I don't know."

"I think you should go after her. I know she probably won't appreciate it at the moment, but in the end, she'll be very happy to have you around. She needs someone she can count on."

"Are you sure I'm the right person? Maybe she just needs her best friend."

"Is the great Damon Salvatore scared?" she asked playfully, trying to lighten up the mood.

"Shitless, just don't tell anyone!" he answered and Caroline smiled weakly. "I just want her to be okay, if she doesn't want me around, I'll better stay away."

"Oh, she most certainly wants you around. She's just too afraid to admit it herself. She probably thinks you'll get hurt because of her. You should know, all the people she loves seem to die around her all the time and it freaks her out."

"I can imagine why."

"That's the point. She doesn't want you in her life, not because she doesn't like you, but because she's afraid you'll get hurt because of her."

"That's ridiculous." How could she think such thing? She is a great woman who deserves happiness. She couldn't be the reason he got hurt, 'a person could never be responsible for another person's life' he always said.

"I know, but for Elena it's the only thing she knows. She just doesn't let people in."

"You really think it's a good idea to go and find her?" he asked one last time, still unsure. He really didn't want to upset her.

"Two hundred percent."

"Well then, I'll better go," he said turning around.

"Good luck!" she yelled behind him, he was going to need it. Knowing Elena, he would have a tough time helping her out.

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading! I know there's really a lot of information in this chapter on a very short time…but if you've questions, feel free to ask! <strong>

**Oh, and don't hate me for letting her run again...I just couldn't stop her, lol. But hey, he's coming after her, right? **

**Review and let me know what you think of it! (maybe I could give you some spoilers for the next chapters?) :D **

**xoxo**


	14. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I don't own the vampire diaries.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 13<strong>

The tears were spilling out the corner of her eyes rolling down on her cheek and she let them. How could she let all of this happen? After everything she has been through, you should think she learned her lesson. Clearly she didn't…and now she'll probably hurt the one person she loved the most. She should've stayed away from him like she planned to all along…this was so wrong…wrong on more than one level. She made a mistake…once again.

Because of her selfishness he'll get hurt. Luckily she got back to her senses before it was too late. At least now they could still move on…or she hoped they could.

The moment he'd walked back into her life, she'd been so surprised and confused that she didn't even think of the consequences. She choose not to think of the fact that he could end up…no-no, she couldn't even think about that, she will never forgive herself if something would to happen to him. But the accident of her brother made her realize this 'thing' they had, wasn't a good idea. She was cursed, damned to live alone. She shouldn't put anyone in danger…but still she let him in, even if it only was a tiny bit, but she did it. All that time she'd know the consequences, but she had chosen to ignore them.

More she thought about it, more furious she got. How could she do this? How could she ruin someone's life so easily? It's horrible, she was a horrible person. She needed to stay away from the people she loved. From him, from Jeremy, from Caroline and Jenna…oh God, Jenna! She had no idea what was going on; she totally forgot, and her aunt had the right to know. Even if she wasn't their guardian anymore, she was still their only living relative.

Elena grabbed her phone and called her aunt. Poor Jena she started blaming herself; telling her she'd been a bad guardian and she should've been there.

After Elena calmed her down and explained what happened, Jenna assured her she's on her way and Ric and she will be there in a few hours. She hung up the phone, placing in besides her on the small table.

Before she had a chance to reflect on the conversation, there was a loud knock on the door, but she didn't run towards it to open it. She didn't feel the need to see anyone; she'd rather stayed alone…_forever_.

"Elena? I know you're in there! Just please open the door!" she heard _his_ voice yell. He came after her…he already cared too much about her. She had to stay away from him… "I said open the fucking door!" he shouted again, this time less friendly and less patient.

There she stood…a dilemma…what should she do? What would a stable person do? Calm down, she told herself, stressing out isn't going to help. A normal person would probably just open the door and let the upset guy in, maybe even explain why she couldn't see him anymore and why she needed to be alone. But then again, she wasn't a normal girl. She was cursed.

Letting out a sigh, she walked straight to the door to open it. Before she could do anything, Damon burst in without even looking at her and started furiously pacing around the room.

"Why are you here?" she asked slightly annoyed when he didn't start speaking. He obviously wasn't here without a reason.

"Why do you think?" he said looking her straight in the eye. For a moment she forgot about her worries and she got lost in their little world, but then she blinked away the sudden distraction and she started to focus again.

"I'm not in the mood for your games, Damon. You should leave," she told him bluntly, not even thinking about his feelings. She had to stay cold…maybe then he would realize this 'thing' between them wasn't going to work. It was better if he hated her, for both of them. Maybe that way he could move on.

But he didn't leave, instead he took a step closer until he was standing right in front of her, still not touching her, although she could almost feel him. It was weird, the kind of spark they had, it was pretty rare too, but she couldn't give in. Not now, not ever. She had to stay strong; she had to save him…from herself. "You can say whatever you want, Elena, but I'm not leaving. You need me; you don't have to go through all this alone. Let me be here for you!"

"I don't want you here!" she shouted back while pushing him further away again. Didn't he understand? Didn't he understand she was trying to save him! All she wanted for him was to be happy, happy without her.

"Like I said, you can say whatever you want. I know you, Elena, deep down you don't want me to leave. Don't worry about me; I don't need to be saved."

She blinked a few times; letting his words sink into her mind…did he just tell her he didn't need to be saved? What did he know ? More importantly, who talked to him?

The confusion must've been visible all over her face cause he added: "I know you lost so many people; I know you think I'll be the next one. But if I am, that's my choice to make, Elena. It's my risk to take. And damnit, I want to take that risk if it means being with you as long as I live."

"I understand you want to be there for me, but that's just part of the problem! I will hurt you in some way, not intentionally, but I will! And I would hate it to see you getting hurt, Damon! I would hate myself for it! You deserve so much better!" She took a step backwards, but he took her hand in his before she had the chance to get to far. When she didn't pull away he closed the distant and his lips crashed down on hers.

She knew it was wrong, even worse than wrong. Here she was, destroying his life…but it felt so damned good. She couldn't push him away…she couldn't stop this. It was too heavily, it was too perfect. She couldn't find the strength to fight these feelings. She tried so hard, but she'd lost her strength.

She gave in…she couldn't do it anymore, she couldn't push him away. She'd reached the top of her level of resistance. So instead of doing the right thing, instead of stopping what they had started…she kissed him back with all the passion she had left. She kissed him like he was the only thing left in the world, cause in her mind, he was…she had nothing left besides him and a few friends. But he was truly the most important person in her life…he meant everything to her. She couldn't even start to imagine a life without him in it…but what did all of this meant?

Only one thing, she was going to give him a life full of misery…but it was a risk he wanted to take…right? How selfish would it be to let him do this? To give in and let him risk his happiness? The happiness he truly deserved more than anyone.

Very slowly she started to push him away again, trying to free herself. "I can't do this, Damon. I can't let you ruin your life…not for me." The words started coming from her lips, but he didn't give her the time to finish before he attacked her lips again. This time she just couldn't think straight anymore. Deep down she knew her fight was over. He would win this time…

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><p>He could feel her slowly giving in and he never felt more relieved than in that moment. She tried to fight him so hard, he knew this was tough on her, but she had to stop pushing him away. It wouldn't help her; it would only make things even worse. She didn't have to go through this all alone; he was there for her…hell he would always be there for her. He couldn't let her go…not anymore; it was already too late for that.<p>

He deepened the kiss, trying to show her she wasn't alone this time. Much to his surprise she immediately reacted and kissed him back with full force instead of pushing him away again. He used his opportunity to lift her up and she wrapped her long, smooth legs around his waist.

Not leaving her lips once, he carried her through the apartment until they arrived at their destination – the bedroom. He softly laid her down on the bed and joined her.

He needed her to understand he wouldn't let her go anymore, no matter how hard she tried to get away. All these years apart made him realize he was never going to forget about her, he couldn't even stop thinking about her. So the only solution was staying…staying with her and trying to make her realize she wasn't doomed, trying to make her happy the way she deserved to be.

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><p>She'd tried to fight, but giving in was <em>so<em> _much_ easier. Right there in his arms, she knew it was where she belonged. Although she couldn't have a real relationship with him, she would enjoy their time together. He could try to convince her as much as he wanted to, but she knew she was damned to stay alone. In the end, everything would stay the same…she would be alone grieving for all the people she lost. But that didn't mean she couldn't enjoy their moments together _now_. Pushing him away was clearly not helping so the only thing she could do now was giving in. She just hoped she wouldn't harm him too much.

"You've got to stop worrying so much, baby," she heard him whispered in her ear. She turned her head to face him, looking him right in the eyes and what she saw surprised her. His eyes were full of passion, admiration and…and _love_. Did he…? No, she must have gotten it all wrong, he couldn't _love_ her.

Deliberately trying to ban her inner struggles she kissed him; taking him by surprise, earning a moan of him when she nibbled on his bottom lip. She shouldn't be doing this…not now her brother was lying in the hospital…fighting for his life…it was wrong. But then again, it felt so right…too right. Everything felt right when _he_ was around.

When Damon started caressing her breasts through the material of her blouse, she forgot about everything and started _finally_ focusing on the man in her bed. She was getting so aroused; she couldn't believe what a strong effect he had on her.

Her head fell backward as he slowly removed one of his hands from her hip and slid it smoothly between her legs, sliding his fingers into her wet silk. He smiled as her body shivered and she cried out softly. She spread her legs a little more, letting his fingers sink deeper between her legs.

She wrapped her arms around his waist and dug her nails in his back while he kept thrusting his fingers in and out of her at a steady pace. Suddenly his lips were back on hers and his tongue was sliding between her lips again, savoring her. She greedily sucked on his lips, making him groan.

"Need you," was all she managed to say while she tried to even her breathing, which wasn't exactly easy when Damon was trying to drive her crazy…with success.

He slowly released her and started to suck at the curve of her neck, she could feel the tip of his erection pressing against her lower body and it turned her on even more then she already was. He nudged her thighs apart and settled himself between them, pressing against her wet center. Very carefully he bucked his hips and she rose hers to meet his thrusts.

He was being extra carefully and slow; wanting to make the moment more intimate, wanting it to last, she had to feel she was loved. He tenderly stroke her cheek before kissing her again, this time he didn't deepen the kiss, he just enjoyed a simple touch of her lips against his.

After a while he changed the angle so he'll hit her sweet spot with every single thrust, it drove her crazy and she could feel her walls starting to contract against his member. It was crazy how he made every orgasm better than the former one; he was sending her right into oblivion.

When her body exploded he lost every bit of control he had left and gave in to his own orgasm, which was earth shattering as always. He'd never known a woman that could satisfy him the way Elena could; she was simply the best he'd ever had.

He kissed the crook of her neck while they rode out their final tremors. It took her a full minute before she could finally take a deep breath and pomp some highly needed oxygen to her lungs. "That was amazing," she whispered, still panting.

"It was," he admitted while stroking a lock of hair out of her face. They stayed there, in each other arms, for a long while and he just kept staring at her in awe. "You are amazing," he said softly while looking deeply in her eyes.

She could feel her eyes starting to water; he was acting so sweet, so tender. It was too much, she didn't deserve this. She just didn't. How could he even like her this much? She was just another woman in his life, right?

As much as she wanted to believe in fate…it just wasn't possible for them to be together. She would need a hell of a lot more proof before she would even start to admit that maybe, maybe they belonged together.

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><p><strong>First a huge thanks to all those wonderful persons who left me a review last chapter! You guys are amazing! <strong>

**About the story, I know, Elena's still being stubborn, but it's not like Damon lets her get away with it, right? ;) **

**I hope everyone liked the chapter! Please leave me a review and let me know what you think!**

**xoxo**


	15. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own the vampire diaries, but I wish I did. **

**A/N: ****Thank you so much for all those wonderful reviews, guys! They mean the world to me! **

**Also a special thanks to my awesome beta Bibi, as usual she's been a great help to me!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 14<strong>

A thin strip of light fell into the room and Elena slowly opened her eyes. The curtains were still closed and she was lying in her bed, alone. Where did Damon go? He usually waited to get up until she was awake. She was starting to get used to waking up next to a gorgeous man, the heat of his body was giving her a reinsuring sensation. In the beginning it felt weird, but with every passing day she started to get more and more comfortable with having Damon around in the morning. It had been a huge adjustment to live with someone, since she'd been alone for a long while, but she was glad to have him around.

A week has passed since her nervous breakdown. The morning after the accident happened, she'd tried to push _him_ away _again_, but he wouldn't let her. He kept telling her over and over again she wasn't cursed and she wouldn't harm him. She had to admit it was kinda cute, how determined he was to convince her. But she knew better than that. She would hurt him, not deliberately, but something would happen to him…it always did; people she loved always ended up getting hurt.

A part of her was relieved he didn't give up on her, the selfish part. She was happy he wanted to fight for her cause it meant he really liked her. But the other part 'rational part' knew it was wrong to let him do this. He shouldn't suffer just cause she wanted to have him. She couldn't be selfish with him, he meant too much to her.

Most people thought she was crazy, crazy cause she believed she was cursed. But what other explanation was there? She did loose everyone she loved over the years, only a few of them where still around. What else could she think? Ignore it? That would be the most selfish thing to do; she wasn't that kind of person. She knew she wasn't, she was kind and loving, not someone who would deliberately hurt someone else. You could call her a lot of things, but she wasn't evil.

Suddenly someone pushed the door open and her eyes widened when Damon walked in with a huge smile on his lips. Something wasn't right, he almost never had _that_ smile; it was bright and made her entire world lighten up again.

"I just got a call from the hospital," he blurted out, not able to stop the words from coming out. He was just so happy to give her good news, after everything she's been through, she deserved it.

"What?" she asked, concentrating her attention on him. Totally forgetting about his smile, the worries came back at full force. Oh god, something must have happened with her brother. She was already standing up, when she heard him start to explain why they called.

"Don't worry," he said trying to calm her down after seeing her eyes grew wide. "It was good news."

"Really?" she pushed, curious. He'd better tell her immediately what was going on before she started to freak out again. Her body fall back on the mattress to listen to him, hoping it indeed was good news.

"Your brother woke up this morning and according to his doctor, he doesn't have brain damage at all. He's totally healthy, except for the few bruises and scars on his face, he looks like nothing happened."

Elena flew up from the bed and run toward him, wrapping her arms around his waist in joy. He easily picked her up and spun her around through the room. When he settled her down again, she had a large smile on her face. "Is he really okay?" she asked one last time to be sure. She couldn't believe it…her brother was alive? More importantly, he was healthy and alive? How did that happen? "We have to go see him!" she exclaimed, already starting to pick up some clothes.

"Yes, he's really alright. See, I told you to keep having faith. We'll leave in a few minutes; I know you well enough to know you wouldn't believe it until you see it for yourself."

"I'm not a fatalist," she told him, not even questioning how he knew her so well.

"I know, but sometimes you could use a little hope. You're so convinced that whoever comes around you will get hurt; this proves it doesn't always have to be that way. Sometimes you do have luck."

She just nodded, not wanting to have the same discussion with him all over again. It was bad enough already that they kept fighting about the same thing. She liked him way too much to keep fighting with him. She'd rather make love to him.

"I know that look," he whispered in her ear and she knew damn well what he meant. She was completely turned out just by being in his arms. "But first, we should go visit your baby brother. I'm sure he wants to see you."

A red blush of embarrassment came across her cheeks; she had to stop listening to her hormones. At the moment her brother was the most important thing in the world and her horny thoughts could certainly wait a little longer until they got back from the hospital. They could celebrate when she was sure her little brother was really fine. "You're right," she stated, knowing if she wouldn't leave soon, he'd drive her insane.

"Of course I am, I always am," he smirked cockily. She just rolled her eyes out of annoyance, could he get any cockier? She should look out with what she says and stop feeding his enormous ego, which was already way too big.

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><p>Half an hour later they arrived at the central hospital together. She didn't even take the time to eat breakfast, she was just too anxious to see her brother.<p>

"Elena, he's really alright, you can stop worrying now," Damon said while he took her hand in his, caressing the back of it. He tried to calm her down a little, but she couldn't help it. Everything was just so overwhelming.

"I won't believe it until I can see it with my own eyes," she whispered back, looking at her feet.

"There you are," she heard a voice exclaim in front of her. When she looked up she saw a happy Anna waving at them to come with her. "Jer will be happy to see you. He's been asking for you since he woke up."

"Why? What happened? Did something happen?" Elena asked concerned.

"Healthy as a horse; you should see him! He's acting like nothing happened. He's already trying to get out of bed, but I told him he had to stay in until the doctors say it's okay to walk around."

"I'm glad you were here when he woke up," she answered grateful. Without Anna her brother would probably be still in jail, or dealing again. She had been a very good influence on him and she definitely knew how to handle her brother.

Anna just smiled at her before dragging her through the hospital hallway's until they arrived at Jeremy's room. At first she didn't dare to go in, but after Damon had whispered some encouraging words in her ear, she felt ready enough.

Seeing her brother lying there was still hard, but when she saw him smile at her, all the worries vanished and they've been replaced by pure joy. She ran towards his bed and pulled him in her arms, totally forgetting his bruises.

"Aw sis, look out," he hissed softly when she wrapped her arms around his middle. His ribs still hurt as hell because of the heavy smash he got when his car crashed.

"Sorry," she said innocently, she was just so happy to see her brother back, awake and healthy.

"Missed me?" her brother asked smirking when she didn't let go of him. She gave him a playful smack, careful not to hurt him anymore.

"Of course I missed you, silly. That driver's lucky he was already dead, otherwise I would've had to kill the idiot." Tears started welling up in her eyes, she just couldn't hold them back. She was too relieved her brother was okay.

"Hey, I'm okay now," he said reassuring. "You don't have to worry, I won't go away. You're stuck with me."

"Like that's a bad thing," she smiled before hugging him again.

"A month or two ago, it was a bad thing, Lena."

"No, it wasn't," she answered firmly. "I've always loved you, Jer. I'm very proud of you, for fighting back, for the changes you made in your life, for everything." Even after everything he'd done to her and himself, she still loved him with her entire heart and soul. He was just her brother and she would always be there for him, no matter what.

"Thanks, sis. I'm glad I have you. Without you I would probably be dead by now."

"You can't say that!" she exclaimed.

"No, it's true. You've always been there for me, even when I didn't deserve it. You helped me every time I was in trouble. I need to thank you for that. You were the only reason I wanted to change, sis. I love you." There was so much emotion in her brother's voice; she'd never seen him this way. It made her cry even harder, he was going into the right direction. Her brother was finally growing up.

"I love you too, Jer," she whimpered between sobs. He would probably never know how proud she was. Her brother meant everything to her.

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><p>It was already past noon when they finally got back from the hospital. She'd talked with a few doctors and they all confirmed her that her brother was going to be alright. He didn't have any brain damage and he would be able to leave to hospital in less than a week. Still, she couldn't help but worry. Maybe not as much about her brother's health, but about her feelings for Damon and how they kept developing stronger and stronger. They'd crossed the line when she let him in the day she found out about the accident.<p>

They couldn't get into a relationship for more than one reason. First of all, he was still her boss, it wasn't right to have this kind of relationship with your boss. Certainly not when there were more than a few people who wanted your job. If Jane would find out, she'd do everything to get Elena fired.

Secondly, she still wasn't sure about letting him come closer to her. Normally she didn't easily let people in. What if she will hurt him? She couldn't do that. But everyone kept telling her she should take the risk.

Maybe she should talk to Caroline; her friend always knew what to do in a situation like this. Although she already knew what Caroline would tell her, she would say she should go for it. So, what was she waiting for?

Deep down, she knew what was holding her back, she was afraid. Not only to hurt him, but to get hurt herself too. He meant everything to her and more, he was the reason why she felt this happy. She couldn't even start to imagine what it would feel like if someone took him away from her, if she was left all alone again. It wouldn't just do damage, it would destroy her entire world. Every day she felt more like her old self that had been locked away for years. All of that would be for nothing if he'll ever left her.

The desire to tell Damon she loved him was big; she didn't know how long she'll be able to hold it back. Then again, what if he didn't love her back?

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><p>Damon was relieved that they were finally back home. It had been a tough day for both of them. Elena was an emotional wreck, even if she didn't know it herself. He'd seen how hard she'd tried to hold her tears back when she saw her brother, but she just hadn't been able to.<p>

When she talked to the doctor she had a rough time, it had been hard for her not to start yelling at the poor guy. He'd almost felt sorry for the doctor because Elena was asking him so many questions.

They were now both sitting in the living room, lost in their own thoughts. He didn't dare say something to her, afraid she'd try to push him away again. He was now at the point where he didn't know what to do anymore. He wanted to fight for her, he wanted to give her everything she'd ever dreamed of, but she had to let him in. He couldn't keep forcing her, it was getting too much. He wanted to tell her how much he loved her, cause he did.

But did she love him? Did she want to be with him? Or was she going to run away again, like she did before? Could he trust her not to run when he told her about his true feelings?

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><p>The silence in the living room was comforting, although they both wanted to have a conversation. Neither of them spoke, they just worried about the same things, like two love sick fools that where scared to admit what they truly felt.<p>

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><p><strong>So tell me, how much do you all love me that I let him live? What can I say, he's just an awesome character and I couldn't let him die. <strong>

**For the next chapter, I'm already going to give you a little spoiler. Our favorite couple will soon have a little time-out, now where do you think they're going? The ones that make a right guess may ask me a question, any question about the story and I'll happily answer it...**

**So if you want a huge spoiler about what's going to happen, make the right guess and you get your answer! ;) **

**Show me some love and review!**

**Xoxo**


	16. Chapter 15

**I'm so sorry it took me so long to update! It's not entirly my own fault, but my beta Bibi is just worth the wait ;) So a big thanks to my wonderful friend and beta Bibi! She's great! **

**Also congrats to the only person who guessed where they were going! _laughingsmyfav_, I hope you liked the answer to your question! **

**So, now I'm just gonna shut my mouth and let you read the next chapter! It's slightly longer than usual, so I hope you all like that!**

**Disclaimer: Nope, I still don't own the Vampire Diaries, which sucks cause I'd love to own Damon Salvatore, even if it was just for one day! :D**

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><p><strong>Chapter 15<strong>

The next morning Elena went to work like nothing happened, she desperately needed some distraction and working always did the trick for her. She'd lived like this for years so another day of brooding and working wouldn't be much of a problem.

"Look who's here now, I certainly thought you were going to quit your job." Only hearing the skeptical voice of Jane was enough to make her sick; that girl was driving her crazy. If she'll ever get to be CEO, the first thing she would do would be to hire a new secretary. She really didn't understand why all men were so fond of that slut. The woman only acted friendly and polite towards men or people she wanted something from.

"I'm not you, Jane; I don't quit when things get tough. You should definitely try a change of attitude if you ever want to become more than _just_ a secretary," she answered smirking before walking straight to her office. She expected a bitchy retort, but didn't get one. Was the girl finally learning? She hoped so, maybe miracles did happen sometimes. Cause Jane holding back was certainly not something you could call normal. Maybe she did have a chance of attitude after all, hopefully it was a good one and not another try at _getting Elena fired_ move.

When she walked into her office her relaxed mood immediately disappeared and changed into a stress mood, there was so much work! An entire pile of papers was lying on her desk. That was the exact reason why she never used her free days. Every time she got back, there was so much work to do. On days like this, she realized that being a workaholic wasn't that bad, at least she didn't have such a pile of papers on her desk when she worked all day long.

While Jer was lying in the hospital, she stayed home so she could go visit him often. Damon had told her it was no problem, but seeing the tons of work, she knew it had been a problem. Of course Caroline couldn't do all the work by herself, there was just too much of it. Knowing her friend, Caroline had worked like crazy already. She was just the best, _best_ friend ever!

A few minutes later, her friend arrived at the office, her hands full with folders and papers. She probably had taken some work home so she didn't have to stay at the office all alone. It was so typical Caroline, why hadn't she asked for help? There was definitely too much work to get it done all by herself.

"Hi Lena, you're back already?" she asked surprised, but definitely relieved too. Work had been like hell without her best friend.

"Hm-hm. I needed some distraction." She really did, after all the emotions she went through for the past few days…working didn't sound so bad anymore. She could use some time to progress everything that had happened, cause it was a lot to take in. First seeing Damon back, then her stupid feelings that were coming back along with him…and of course her brother…she still couldn't believe he was really healthy again…but he was. Maybe her prayers were heard sometimes. She didn't know what she would've done if her brother hadn't woken up from his coma or worse… She still couldn't say the words.

"So I heard Jer's awake? When will he be coming home again?" her friend asked. She was very glad Jeremy survived all the drama; she wasn't sure if her friend would've taken a different scenario. She'd been through enough already; she deserved some happiness instead of all the misery. During the time Elena had been gone, she kind of avoided talking to her. She was afraid that she'd accidently say something about the tons of work that needed to be done and make Elena feel guilty and that was exactly what she was trying to avoid. The poor girl already had too much on her plate; she didn't need another problem to deal with.

"Probably next Monday, they wanted to keep him there over the weekend to run some more tests. They said it was a miracle that he recovered completely, they want to make sure he'll stay that way." Her friend just nodded and started sorting out the papers that were now lying across her desk. "Where did all the work came from?"

"Jane." Of course, she would do everything to get them into trouble; it was so typical and so Jane alike to do something like that. That girl would sell her own mother to get what she wanted. There she thought for a moment that the woman could actually have a change of attitude, no such luck. "She just couldn't give the other directors some extra work," Caroline added annoyed.

"Typical. Did you ask Damon for help?"

"What? Of course not, I'm not going to ask my boss to help me with my work; I'm perfectly capable of doing it myself," she defended herself.

Elena almost forgot Damon was still a stranger to her friend, it wasn't because _she_ knew him well, that Caroline did so too.

"I'll ask him this afternoon. We have a meeting with the other directors so it won't be a problem." She had no idea why they were having that meeting, but she was a director and she had to be there. Damon had been acting very mysterious about the whole thing for days now, she suspected it had something to do with their new French client, but she wasn't sure. Normally he never kept secrets from her, but he wanted to surprise everyone, including her. She wasn't the most patient person so she didn't like it at all, but there wasn't much she could do about it. She'd already tried all the tricks she knew, but he wouldn't budge. She wouldn't say that out loud, but she kind of admired his perseverance and stubbornness.

"How're you doing, by the way? You don't sound as depressed as you did a few days ago," Caroline said sincerely surprised. She'd thought that Elena would stay home for at least another week. She'd been through a lot the past weeks and knowing Elena, she was still worrying like hell.

"Better. I'm still having a hard time, but it'll get over."

"Still have trouble eating?" That was the question Elena didn't want to hear. Yes, she was having some problems again. She knew she should talk to someone about it, but she just didn't have the guts to do it. After all those years, she was getting used to eating less than the average person. It wasn't like she had a problem with it herself, but it wasn't good for her health and she knew it.

Caroline took the silence as a yes. "You should talk to Anna about it. Didn't you tell me she was studying psychology?"

Elena nodded. "She is. But I can't talk to her about it now; she's having enough problems with Jeremy as it is. She has to be there for my brother." Anna had been amazing for the past weeks, she took care of Jeremy to the point where she made Elena feel needless because she was there all the time. She was definitely a special girl. They will be very happy together, Elena was sure of it. They had a strong connection, an understanding that made them perfect for each other.

"Always putting yourself behind, come on Lena, sometimes you have to be selfish. You're not responsible for every living creature on earth. Sometimes you have to think about your own happiness and you know it!" her friend was making a good case, sometimes she did need to put herself first; we all need to put ourselves first, but she just couldn't do it. She just couldn't be selfish when it came to her loved ones.

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><p>Elena spent her entire lunch break with Caroline, trying to come up with a plan to get all the work done in time. While all the other directors were just walking around with nothing to do . It wasn't fair, that stupid Jane! She was playing a dangerous game by trying to get her fired.<p>

When she walked in the conference room everyone was already sitting in their chairs, except for Mr. Salvatore (she needed to keep repeating his name so she wouldn't call him Damon again). One mistake could be fatal, no one had to know about their secret affair, it was dangerous enough already. She wasn't ready to get fired, she loved her job. She couldn't just give everything up for a man, it was a promise she'd made to herself many years ago. She wouldn't let a guy ruin her future, not even if she loved him. Probably not an easy promise to keep, but she was going to do everything she could to make it happen.

After some deep thoughts about it, she was sure she did indeed love him. There was just no other way to explain the things she felt when he was around; he made her crazy, but in a good way. He'd changed her life drastically, but she loved every bit of it. They just shared some kind of spark that set the entire universe on fire. Every time she saw him she would get these little jitters in her stomach, which probably where the butterflies that danced around in her belly. She always thought it was crazy when people told her they felt butterflies when they were in love, right now, she finally understood what they meant all along.

Two minutes later, Damon arrived at the meeting, you could clearly see the disapproval look in the eyes of some directors; typical, like they were always on time. She felt the sudden urge to defend her boyfriend…wait did she just thought of Damon as her _boyfriend_? Where did that come from? But his sexy, deep voice brought her back to the meeting…although she couldn't really concentrate when he was looking so damned hot in his black suit. Why again did he need to look so incredibly sexy? It should be forbidden.

"Sorry I'm late," Damon began. "I gathered you here together today because of our new important client, Mr. Du Chateau He wants a personal meeting with a few of the directors so he'll know for sure if he wants to work with us. He's not easy to please so we have to play it smart. We can't lose this opportunity. It's a chance that would bring this company a lot of profit. The man's company is definitely worth some extra work from all of you." He looked everyone straight in the eye to make his point, deliberately skipping Elena; he didn't want to make her uncomfortable; which definitely would happen if he looked in those chocolate brown doe eyes. "You all get one day to prove yourself worthy to go with me, I want you all to make a paper about this man and his company. Tomorrow I will choose two of you to come with me to Paris. So be prepared and show me the best you got. After all, I can only take two…"

"Paris?" Rose asked surprised, she was the head of the publicity department and totally loved Europe. Her parents still lived in the UK so it made sense she loved going there.

"Yes, Paris," Damon emphasized. "The headquarters of his business are in Paris, so we'll go there to meet the guy. I hope you all do the best you can because this trip won't be as boring as you might think. Mr. Du Chateau himself will make sure we enjoy his home town." He winked at the female directors before he told everyone they could leave.

Elena just waited until everyone was gone so she could talk with him in private. She didn't want anyone to hear her conversation with her boss; you never know what might happen…

"Something wrong, Ms. Gilbert? Don't you have enough work to do now that I gave you a new assignment? I'm sure there's a lot you can find about Mr. Du Chateau. He's a real French legend." he said smirking. Not that he needed to read her paper about Du Chateau; he would take her with him without further questions. She could use some free time, she needed it.

"There actually is," she confirmed.

"Oh?" he asked a little more serious. Did something happen? He immediately felt kind of over protective, he wouldn't let anything happen to _his_ girl, damn he was turning into a sissy.

"Did you know Jane send us all the new files from the last two weeks? Caroline and I have tones of work and we'll never be able to get everything done by the end of the week while the other directors have nothing to do. I don't even have the time to keep up with my own job. How the hell can I do research with all those files that are waiting for me? I'm sure she can send some of them to other departments in the company."

He just nodded before taking a step closer toward her, "I think she might be jealous since I definitely showed my affection towards you and I told her I wasn't interested in an affair with my secretary," a smirk came across his face and she gave him a playful smack. Of course, why hadn't she thought of it? That stupid secretary would do everything to get Elena in discredit, he should think of hiring someone else…

"I'm serious, Damon! We won't get all the work done!" she exclaimed annoyed by his behavior, sometimes he was a real adolescent.

"I'll see what I can do okay? But I can't make it too obvious that I want to help you. We don't want people thinking I will choose you tomorrow because I like you instead of your paper, right?" he said, playfully raising his eyebrow.

"What?" she asked confused. She was so cute when she was acting like a naïve little girl, he thought in adoration.

"What do you think? I'm not going to take some other girl to the city of love, mon amour, I would miss you too much." He gave her an innocent wink and she could almost feel her heart explode, sometimes he was really too charming for his own good.

"You're seriously going to take me to Paris, even if my paper sucks?" she asked just to be sure. Not that her paper would suck, she always put time in her assignments, she was way too professional not to.

"You paper won't suck, besides, no one but me gets to read the assignment, so no one has to know if your work was good or not."

"Damon, you can't do that and you know it! It's not right." As much as she would love to go to Paris, it wasn't the right thing to do. Everyone deserved an honest chance. She would hate it to know that someone had to stay home because of her, it wasn't fair.

"There are things that are a lot worse than taking you to Paris, honey. It's not like I'm promoting you or anything, you got that all on your own. You are great at what you do Elena and you deserve that trip more than anyone else." She just rolled her eyes at his comment. It was so typical Damon to say something like that.

"Never mind. So, you're going to see if you can help us out?" she asked again, knowing that there was no way she could get her work done and start on her new assignment in a week.

"I'll do everything I can, sweetheart." He took a step closer, but she immediately pulled back. She couldn't let her hormones get the best of her, even if her body screamed at her to let him have his way with her. Dirty imagines started to creep up in her mind…she definitely could use some extra self control when _he_ was around.

"We can't and you know it! Everyone can walk in this room!" He just lifted his shoulders and gave her a wink, before walking out the room without kissing her goodbye. They definitely had to be more careful; they couldn't let anyone find out about their secret affair. Certainly not now they were going to Paris together.

Paris. She'd always wanted to visit the city. She never got the chance to visit Europe so it would definitely be a nice, new experience, certainly now that she was going with the man she loved. It was going to be the relaxing trip she needed. Of course they had to work too, but knowing Damon…there would be plenty of time to explore the city…or each other for that matter. She already started to imagine what they would do all day _and_ night long… Damn, she really had to stop those dirty thoughts before she would go crazy, if she wasn't already.

For the first time she wasn't worrying about their relationship. She just knew it was too late to end it now. It was obvious that they both had feelings for one another, even if they never talked about it.

What they shared was special and she wouldn't throw it away. But she had to open up to him, she knew that much, but didn't know how. By opening up, she would give him a chance at hurting her and she didn't know if she could handle something like that. Her love for him was getting stronger every day, but was she ready for a real relationship; ready to explore 'love'?

She'd been so sure she would never end up in a situation like this, but it was happening and there was nothing she could do about it. Even if she could, she probably wouldn't do anything cause deep down, she loved the feeling. Letting loose, stop being in control, it felt beyond good, even if she was scared of doing so.

Damon would be there for her, no matter what, she knew that, but did she want it? Stupid question, of course she wanted that, she was selfish enough to want something so important. He was the most important thing in the world to her; of course she wanted him to be there for her.

They should talk about it, talk about their feelings and what they wanted in the future. It would be hard, but it had to be done.

Then of course, what did she want herself? What did she want for the future? Did she want a future with _him_? She couldn't imagine a future _without_ him, but could she take this chance, this risk? She shouldn't feel guilty about loving him; should she? It wasn't like she'd chosen to feel this way, she just did and there was nothing she could do about it.

There were so many things she'd dreamed of when she was a little girl, but she'd given them up the day her parents past away. Needless to say she'd never been actually happy with her life; more like satisfied, but all of that changed so suddenly. Today she was the strong woman she always wanted to be and she did have a chance to make her dreams come true, a chance at real happiness…the only thing she had to do was take it. Take the chance god had given her and do what she wanted to, needed to do. Give up those silly worries and go for it.

She did want a future with Damon, a future where he was more than just her new lover. Would he like that too? He'd showed her he wanted to keep seeing her, but did he want a real relationship with all the advantages and disadvantages? She should ask him, but again, she didn't know how.

It wasn't like she talked about things like that every day, it would be hard…definitely one of the most difficult things she'd ever done. Talking about her feelings had always been an issue; she'd never talked about the things that went on in her heart.

"Elena?" her friends' voice broke through her trance. When she looked up, she saw she was still standing in the conference room, on the exact place where Damon had left her a few minutes ago…. Sometimes her brooding could get really annoying. She should focus harder when she was at work.

"Why are you still here?" Caroline went on, looking her in the eyes, but she was still deep in her thoughts. "You know you have to work on your paper, right? All the other directors already started."

"Don't worry, Care, I'm coming," she ensured her friend before starting to walk out the room, straight past her friend. She didn't want to be arrogant, but she just didn't feel like talking on the moment. She had more important things to do, like figuring out how the hell she would start a 'feelings' conversation with Damon. She knew she had to do it, she just didn't know how to stop guessing and ask Damon exactly what was _he_ expecting from this 'affair'.

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><p><strong>So Paris? Uhu, I really like clichés, so yeah I chose Paris. I'm pretty sure you'll all like their trip! It's gonna be very fluffy... Although, you still have to wait one more chapter before they'll leave. <strong>

**Show me some love and review, you know you want to! ;)**

**Xoxo**


	17. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: I still don't own the vampire diaries.**

**And we've reached 300! Thank you so much guys, it means the world to me!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 16<strong>

Lazily she turned around thirty degrees and looked at the clock on the other side of the room, it was already past ten and she was still at her office. After the conference she'd started working on her paper while Caroline had finished the work they'd still had thanks to 'lovely' Jane. Damon had kept his word and made sure Jane redistributed the work among all the directors.

But even after the redistribution, they still had a lot of work to do, so Caroline had stayed at the office to work some extra hours today. At nine o'clock, Elena had told her friend that she should go home, knowing she would be stuck there for at least a few other hours. But she didn't want Caroline to work too late tonight cause her friend still had a date to go to, one that had already been compromised because of the amount of work they had to do. It was so stupid and unfair! Elena could clearly see Caroline's red and tired eyes.

Caroline finally wanted to tell Stefan she loved him and now she had to work late. Elena had suggested to go home earlier, but her friend didn't budge, of course, always loyal… sometimes just a little too loyal; not that she didn't appreciate it; of course she did; she was very lucky to have a friend like Caroline, she knew she could always count on her. She was without doubt the best friend in the world.

On the moment, Elena felt like she could kill Jane. It was all her fault that Caroline's date was delayed. She was sure that Stefan wouldn't be mad, he was just a great guy, way to in love with her friend to get mad at her, but still it wasn't fair that their date was ruined because of the little bitch.

"Hello sweetheart," _his_ sensual voice came from behind her, breaking her brooding trance. She quickly turned around to stand face to face with the blue eyed man – the man of her dreams. This was really the first nice surprise of the day. She couldn't wait to take him home. The tension between them was huge and she could feel the well known sensation creeping through her body.

She smiled shyly before pulling him into a desperately needed hug. He really had the perfect timing, just when she was stressing out he was there to bring some peace to her mind again. It was funny, how faith always brought him to her when she needed him the most. You would almost believe they were actually meant to be.

He was surprised by her sudden hug, but he could feel how tense she was. She probably had a rough day, which was expected after her week off, not that she actually had the time to enjoy her days of with her brother in the hospital. She'd been travelling from the hospital back to her apartment for days, you would think she got sick of being in such a depressing place, but she just couldn't stay away from her little brother.

He of all people could understand why; if it would've been Stefan in that hospital bed instead of Jeremy, he would've definitely been there every hour of the day. Sometimes he could swear he hated his baby bro, but deep down he knew that was a lie. He loved his brother with his whole heart and soul. He'd never be able to hate him; he was just his little brother who he loved to tease.

When she finally started to relax in his arms, he felt a smile appearing on his lips. It felt beyond good to have _his_ girl so close to him, to be able to feel her warmth, smell her perfume and hear her angelic voice whisper to him. Yes _his_ girl, she was _his_ and he would make sure things stayed this way. He wouldn't lose her again, one time was enough already. They say 'if you love something set it free, if it comes back it belongs to you'. Well, he let go and now, he got her back, so this time he'll hold on to her. The past few weeks they'd become very close and he'd never shared as much as he had with Elena. She was just special to him, an angel that came into his life just when he needed her the most.

"You should go home," he whispered in her hair, knowing she needed to rest. He should've come to her office sooner, but he didn't know she was still working. She shouldn't work this late, it wasn't healthy. He'd told her before that she should relax more and stop working like a crazy fool, but she just loved her work and she would do everything she could to make the business even more profitable.

Good thing they would soon leave to Paris, he would make sure she will have the best time of her life when they'll arrive there. He would show her they could have a normal relationship like so many others, they were no exception. He wanted to make her happy, cause when she was happy, so was he. Nothing made him happier; seeing her smile, lighted up his entire world, he felt like the luckiest guy in the world because he was the one that could hold her in his arms every night.

When he felt her lips against his, he couldn't do anything else but respond and kissher back. When her tongue slipped between his lips he knew the battle was over, he just couldn't resist her. She was too much of a distraction; a good one, but still a distraction. He couldn't wait to throw all those papers of her desk and put her in the middle of it, making her his.

"You really should rest," he forced the words out of his throat, knowing he would have a little problem down there if they stopped. Dammit, couldn't he keep his hormones in control for just once? Every time she was around he became a horny teenager. It was really annoying.

"I'll go home after we're done," she whispered seductively in his ear before nibbling at his earlobe. She could already feel his huge bulge against her lower body, there was no way she was going to stop now. It was too much fun.

When he was around she just acted differently, she wasn't the shy girl anymore she was a few years ago, she was a grown woman and she knew what she wanted. And right at the moment, _he_ was everything she wanted and more. Her hands slowly slid under his shirt, her fingertips brushing over his strong muscled chest, he really had an amazing and delicious body; there was no doubt about that one. She couldn't wait to feel his skin against hers.

He started pulling at the hem of her shirt, he just couldn't wait any longer; she was too much of a minx today. Sometimes he really couldn't believe she was still the same girl from four years ago, she'd changed a lot…in a _very_ positive way.

A smirk came across her lips, she got him all turned on. Good to know she was still able to make a man all hot and bothered after years of practically living like a nun. Her hunger for his body was worse than ever, even if she had sex more than usual. He could drive her insane.

When he sucked one of her nipples in his mouth, she let out a loud moan, even through the fabric of her bra it felt amazing; damn he was good, but she knew that already. He may be cocky, but he had all the reasons to be so. He definitely knew how to pleasure a woman.

Suddenly they got interrupted by the ringing noise of a phone call. She looked up and her eyes widened…they were still in her office and she'd totally forgotten they could be interrupted by anyone. Shit happens, but why always when she was having fun?

"It's probably the security guard. Usually no one works this late," Damon whispered in her ear before pulling away. She immediately yearned for his embrace again, she just felt much safer in his arms. She let out a pout, but he was already picking up the phone.

"Damon Salvatore speaking," he said when he picked up the phone. He was standing with his back towards her, the perfect opportunity to hug him again. She took a step in his direction, wrapped her arms around his middle and raise herself on her tiptoes, until she could lay her head on his shoulder, much better.

When she started to leave a trail of kisses down his throat to his shoulder, she could hear him hitch and take in a deep breath. Hm, she loved playing him, too bad he was on the phone.

"Yes Charles, I'm still upstairs working together with Ms. Elena Gilbert." The security always started between ten and eleven o'clock, how could she forget? They were lucky Charles had called first; otherwise he would've caught them in the middle of…well, it's safe to say it would've been a _very_ embarrassing moment. The guard probably saw the lights were still on and suspected someone was working late. Although it bothered her a little that she didn't have enough control to wait until they got home, it also turned her on a lot, knowing they almost got caught.

"We'll be down in five; you can go on your round." With that Damon hang up the phone and turned around in her arms. She gave him a wicked smile before kissing his lips. It was supposed to be a quick peck, but as always, it turned out to take a lot longer.

"We should get going," he said looking at her pouting face when they pulled back.

"You can always come over to my apartment," she suggested, hoping he'd say yes.

"Not tonight, Stefan's already suspecting something," he said a little disappointed, while cupping her cheek in his hand, he really loved touching her and he didn't seem able to keep his hands to himself whenever she was around. He still needed to decide whether it was a good or a bad thing.

"You haven't told him about us?" she asked surprised. Why hadn't he told his own brother about them? Did he really want to keep her a secret for everyone? Maybe he didn't want a real relationship.

"No, but because I keep sleeping over at your place, he thinks I have a girlfriend. But don't worry, I denied it, our secret's safe." She just nodded and gave him a fake smile, trying to hide her disappointment. Why did he keep it a secret? She couldn't do anything else but feel unsure about what they shared. Maybe it didn't mean as much to him as it did to her.

He could see her expression changing, but he didn't know what it was. It looked like disappointment, but why would she be disappointed? She was the one that didn't want anyone to know about their affair, right? She was the one that kept telling him they had to stop this. She didn't want anyone to know because she wasn't sure of what she wanted…or did she?

Even if they've been together for a few weeks now, he still hadn't figured her out completely. Sometimes it was really annoying, he just didn't know what to do or what to say. He didn't want to hurt her, but he didn't know what she expected from him, what she wanted. They should talk about it, but he was afraid it would end badly. What if she started talking about ending things, again? He couldn't let her back out now. He loved her way too much to let her go again. She made him feel alive again, alive and very happy. She meant the world to him and he wouldn't give up on her, _ever_.

They walked out the building together and he gave her one last kiss before taking his car and leaving.

When he was gone, a single tear fell down her cheek. She didn't know what to do anymore. She loved him, but she had to tell him about her feelings. The only thing she didn't know was _how_ to do that. She wanted to talk to him, but now she wasn't sure anymore if it was the right thing to do. What if he really didn't want a real relationship…cause that was something she wanted. She'd realized she did want to have a family of her own; she wanted to marry, have children, and be happy. _He_ made her want all those things…. But did he want that too? Did he want to stay with her forever?

After the meeting, she'd had the same questions and she was so sure she would talk about it with him. But when she got the chance, she just started kissing him, in the hope they could talk in the morning. She was a coward, a big one, but what could she do about it?

She wanted to call Caroline; ask her friend for advice, but she was probably at Stefan's now. She wouldn't ruin her friend's night, besides there was always a chance Damon would pick up the phone since it was his apartment too. She could try Caroline's cell, but her friend told her, her battery died a few minutes before she left work. So that wasn't an option either.

Eventually she decided to go home, maybe a good night rest would help her see things clearer. Help her find a way out of this mess, she should've been honest with Damon from the beginning, but she just couldn't tell him about her feelings. She was always so scared he wouldn't love her back. Even now, she still didn't know what she should think of it.

She felt like she meant more to him than the regular girls that passed through his bed…so why wouldn't he just tell his brother he was in a relationship?

Then again, she hadn't told her own brother either. Jeremy knew there was something going on, but she'd never told him the entire truth. He knew that she was good friends with her boss, duh! Damon came around every now and then, but she'd never spoken the words out loud. Her brother was just suspicious.

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><p>It was Saturday evening, Elena was busy packing the last things before she had to leave for Paris; they booked a night flight so she'd sleep in the airplane. She really hoped that would work out since she'd never flown, cause she needed to be fully awake when they had their first meeting with Du Chateau. As he had told her, Damon had chosen her to go with him, together with Rose. She would've felt bad about it, but she knew she'd written a good paper, probably better than the others. No one suspected anything so there was clearly nothing wrong.<p>

Most of the directors knew what she was capable of and they clearly weren't surprised she'd written a hell of a paper. Even Damon had secretly told her he really liked it and that he would've chosen her even if they didn't have a relationship. It was a good boost for her ego, but she still wasn't too sure about the whole Paris thing.

After they had left the building on Wednesday, they hadn't talked about anything other than business. She'd tried to start a conversation about their relationship, but he'd distracted her by starting to kiss her shoulder and they'd ended up making love; _again_. She was really turning into a teenager again, with all the sexual tension around her. Not that she ever had so much sex when she was a teenage girl. She'd been too busy studying and taking care of her little brother so there hasn't been much time for relationships.

She'd learned more about sex in four weeks time, than she had in her entire life. Damon really did drive her crazy, why else would she act this way? Although she loved the sex and the silent moments they shared afterwards, she missed their open conversations, the ones where they told each other about their past, about their lives… she missed that kind of intimacy. But he had clearly tried to avoid heavy conversations and she didn't know why. Was he afraid just like her? Or was he not sure about what he wanted?

So many questions and no answers, she was getting sick of it. They had to talk soon and she would make sure they did once they get to Paris. She wanted to know the truth and she would make sure she would get it. She'd been a coward for far too long already. She needed to take command and talk with him.

When she was done packing she took her keys and left her apartment. Only a few minutes later, she arrived at the office, it was where they would come together before they left for Paris, cause it was too crowded at the airport and they couldn't afford to miss their plane. But when she walked in, she saw something she didn't like at all. Rose and Jane were talking and laughing together like they were best friend, well they _weren't_. What the hell was going on? Since when was Rose so close with that little bitch? Maybe it was time to start a little investigation on that matter …

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><p><strong>Don't you all love me for this quick update? Thank my Beta, she's the reason I was able to update soon! ;)<strong>

**So Jane and Rose...getting suspicious already? Don't worry we first have their trip to Paris, which I won't ruin by putting too much drama in it! **

**Please leave me a review and tell me what you think! I just love reading them... maybe I'll give you a little spoiler? **

**See you all next chapter!**

**Xoxo**


	18. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own the vampire diaries.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 17<strong>

It was around noon when they arrived, European time. Elena felt pretty excited about being in France for the first time in her young life. Her mom and she used to talk about it all the time when she was little; how she would meet her prince charming and how he would propose to her when they were on a holiday in Paris, the city of love. As a child, she loved the stories her mom told her, but when she grow older, she started to realize not everything was as easy as the fairytales she loved to read, not at all...

No matter how much she'd wanted to believe in those stories, when her parents died, so did her dreams.. Life was not like the movies, definitely not; more like the opposite. Her life had been tough, she'd spent hours of brooding about it, but right now, she wanted to enjoy her life. To enjoy the time she could spend with Damon, to enjoy her job and her friends…it would be a first in many, many years. She usually tried to be happy and enjoy her life, but always failed miserably because it was a façade; it wasn't how she wanted her life to be. She hid behind her mask as a strong business woman, while she was still a scared seventeen years old girl who lost her parents, way too soon. Sure she was older now, but on the inside she still felt the same, the same pain, the same regret, uncertainly and the same fear. Letting people in would always by hard, but at least she was willing to try it now. All because of her blue eyed stranger…even when she didn't believe in fate…it came very close to it. It couldn't just be a coincidence that they met, right?

When she walked out the airplane, a warm wind embraced her. She hadn't expected it to be so warm in France. Then again, it was summer so it was probably very normal it was so hot outside. Luckily she brought clothes for both bad and good weather.

Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder and she turned around, to see Damon standing in front of her. "Not so fast," he smirked. "Tired of me already?"

She just rolled her eyes and started walking towards the bus that would drive them to the luggage hall. During the flight, she had to sit next to Rose because Damon wanted to sit at the window and Rose immediately sat down next to him, typical. She'd tried to talk to him, but Rose interrupted them all the time so after about two hours she'd given up the talking and just tried to sleep a little, with no success. She just hoped she wouldn't get a jetlag cause the time difference was pretty big.

"When are we finally going to be alone?" she asked silently, making sure Rose wouldn't hear her question. The woman didn't need to know that Damon and she were close, surely not now; the director was friends with Jane. She still didn't know what was going on, but there was definitely something. It wasn't normal that Rose talked to Jane. They had nothing in common…or did they?"

"Not before this evening, I'm afraid. We have just enough time for a quick lunch before our first meeting with Du Chateau. Afterwards we will go to dinner with a few of his directors to get to know each other a little. So we won't have time to go sightseeing today, but I promise you we'll make some time tomorrow. After all, I did promise you, you'll get to see Paris, didn't I?"

"You did," she smiled back. She was already looking forward to it. He would make sure she'd enjoy herself during their trip, she was certain of it. He always kept his word, which meant a lot to her. She knew she could count on him, which was very important in a healthy relationship. They'd been through a lot the past few weeks, but he proved himself worthy of her trust more than once. Even when she still didn't know for sure what his intentions were, they would make an amazing couple as long as she kept trying to stop worrying so much. He wanted to give this a shot and so did she.

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><p>"My god, I think that idiot gave me a headache," Elena declared frustrated when they arrived back at the bar of the hotel. Rose had gone to bed early so now she was finally alone with her 'boyfriend' for the first time that day.<p>

"I must admit, he was pretty boring," Damon laughed at her expression. They'd been talking with the directors until late in the evening and some of the guys were pretty old, wise but old…and boring. One of them couldn't stop talking about all the adventures he'd been through during his life, in the beginning it had been interesting, but after the sixth story they started to get bored.

"I can't believe Du Chateau doesn't fire him! If he talks that much when there are clients around…I'd run away."

"He probably has his qualities, besides Du Chateau told you he had some older co-workers who didn't want to go on retirement. They're probably very helpful."

"I doubt it, but anyway, I don't want to talk about work tonight."

"No? Then what do you want to talk about, sweetheart?" This was her chance and she knew it. If she asked him now what his intentions were, he would tell her and she could finally stop worrying about it. But the coward inside of her was blocking her again and she didn't know what to do. What if he didn't want a real relationship?

"Elena?" he said a little worried when she zoned out. He knew she was tired and she needed some rest, but she usually didn't zone out as much, only when she was worrying. So why was she worrying? Nothing happened, right? "What's wrong?" he asked concerned.

"I just…I wanted to…I" she stuttered. Eurgh, she sounded like an idiot now.

"You can tell me, honey. I won't bite," he winked, trying to lighten up her mood. But it didn't work and she stayed tense.

"What do you want? I mean, with us, our relationship? We never really talked about it and…I euhm…don't really know." She spoke the words very softly, but when she looked up, she knew he had heard her.

He let out a relieved breath; she was worrying about what he wanted? Really? Wasn't it obvious? She was the one who kept running. "Elena, I want things to work between us, I do want a relationship with you, a real one. I just hate it that I can't tell anyone that you're my girlfriend…but I know why we've to keep it to ourselves and I won't bring you in discredit by letting people know we sleep together. They see us as the employee and her boss, not as just two people who like each other."

She smiled shyly at him, not knowing what to say. She hadn't expected him to be so open about what he wanted, not after she'd kept pushing him away. But it was a relief too, knowing that he did want a real relationship, he hadn't told her he loved her, but that wasn't necessary. They both needed time to progress everything. _She_ didn't even know if she was ready herself to tell him she loved him. She had accepted the fact that she did, but she wouldn't let him know…not for now at least.

"So, what do you want?" It was only fair of him to ask the same question, he deserved to know the truth.

"I've thought about it a lot the last few days…weeks actually. And I came to the conclusion that I can't imagine a life without you in it, so I guess we have to make things work," she answered confidently, letting him know for the first time that she really wanted this. She'd never admit it out loud, but it felt good to tell him about her own intentions. She wanted him to know how she really felt about him.

"That's good, that's _very_ good," he nodded, taking her hand in his and giving it a squeeze. He couldn't believe she had just admitted she wanted a relationship. All those weeks she'd kept pushing, but he'd reached his goal and she wanted to give them a chance. He felt ready to make a dance of joy, screaming it from the rooftops. But he knew she still needed some time to adjust at the idea of them being together for real. He'd almost said he loved her, but he'd stopped when he'd seen the surprise in her eyes. She hadn't expected him to tell her he wanted a real relationship, which made it pretty clear that she wasn't ready to hear 'the words'.

"Do you think it's ever going to be easy?" she asked suddenly, letting her head fell down on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer; the sweet gesture, sending shivers through her body, but it also helped her relax. He always seemed to know exactly what to do when she was a little tense; he was just incredibly perfect for her like that.

"Probably not, but when's life ever easy?" he retorted. He knew she was afraid, but she had to stay strong. He was willing to slow down their relationship for her, as long as she would keep believing in them.

"Why do you always know what to say to me?" she smiled before kissing his cheek, letting her lips stay in place a little longer than they should've. She just loved touching him; it made her feel safe and very much loved.

He just gave her a quick peck on the lips before standing up and pulling her with him.

"Where are we going?" she asked surprised at their sudden movement.

"You'll see," he winked secretly, making her incredibly curious. He knew she hated surprises because she wasn't a patient person, but still he kept them coming! Why did he always need to drive her crazy? When they stopped at the metro station, she looked up at him in surprise. What the hell where they going to do there?

"Trust me, you'll like it. Just wait and see," he ensured her. She just nodded, still not completely sure.

When they arrived, he took her hand in his and gave it a little squeeze before starting to walk towards the exit of the station. When they were outside she could see what his plan was all along. Right in front of her was the Eiffel tower, lights shining bright in the darkness. It was absolutely beautiful; she watched it in appreciation while her lips curled into a smile. He could be so romantic if he wanted to.

"It's beautiful," she smiled at him, snuggling closer to his chest while he wrapped his arm securely around her.

"Every time I come here it takes my breath away," he agreed, happy that she liked it. He knew she needed some distraction after the past weeks and he was going to make sure she got exactly what she needed and more. He wanted her to know just how much he loved her and he would do everything to show it.

They stood there hand in a hand, enjoying the sight and each other, before Damon decided to buy her a little present. There were a bunch of people trying to sell souvenirs, one of them had a cute little Eiffel Tower and he quickly decided that was exactly what he was searching for.

Elena smiled sweetly when he gave it to her, it was a lovely souvenir and she would certainly remember this moment forever. She could understand why people called it the city of love; she could definitely feel the love…

A soft shiver went through her body and she started getting goose bumps on her arms. "Are you getting cold?" Damon asked sweetly when he felt her shiver.

"Maybe a little bit," she smiled shyly. She didn't want to ruin their moment, but she was indeed getting cold. The entire day had been hot, but once the sun was going down, it started to get pretty cold outside.

Like a real gentleman Damon took of his jacket and wrapped it around her, hoping she wouldn't get too cold before they were back at the hotel. He took her hand back in his and started guiding her back towards the metro station. If they were lucky they would be there in a matter of minutes.

"Thanks for tonight," she whispered in his ear while they were waiting for the next train. It had been an incredibly beautiful evening and she'd enjoyed every second of it. She'd always wanted to go see the Eiffel Tower and Damon being there made it ten times better.

"You don't have to thank me. I should thank you for coming with me tonight," he answered, pulling her into a hug. Hopefully things would really work out between them cause she couldn't imagine a day without him by her side. He was just the best thing that happened to her in years and she would always be grateful she got the chance to feel this happy. Only a few weeks ago, she was living a miserable life and today she was happier than ever.

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><p><strong>I know the chapter's rather short, I'm sorry for that. Next one will be longer I promise! So their first day in Paris, did you like it? Don't worry it'll get even better! They finally had their big talk, by the way, I think it was getting time!<strong>

**For the ones that are still interested, I'll start my new story soon, but I'm still not sure when. I'd really like to finish this one first. I'm just horrible at writing several stories at the same time, it usually turns out that I abandon one of them ;) **

**So please leave me a review and tell me what you think! I appreciate each one of them! **

**See you all next chapter!**

**xoxo**


	19. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own the vampire diaries.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 18 <strong>

The next morning came way too soon. They had a meeting at eight o'clock and she still needed to prepare herself for the important gathering, since she didn't get the time the day before. After Damon and she had arrived at the hotel, they'd spend hours just talking in her room before they both went to bed, separately.

It had been the worst night in weeks, she just couldn't find rest without his strong arms firmly wrapped around her; he was her own security blanket, always there to protect her. But now they had to sleep in separate rooms, she didn't feel safe anymore, she felt lonely and lost. She belonged in his arms, she needed to be around him, but they couldn't risk getting caught. So she had to sleep all alone, lost in her king-sized bed. She just wished she could sneak behind Rose's back, why not?

She knew well enough why not, but she just couldn't help it. After spending so much time with Damon the past weeks, she didn't seem able to be alone anymore; she just missed him. Every time she saw him, she felt little butterflies in her stomach, dancing around, making it hard to breath. He just had that kind of effect on her. She hated it, but loved it at the same time.

"Are you ready, Elena?" Rose asked from behind her. The woman was staring at her nonchalantly, giving her a weak smile. She was certainly trying to be polite, but the 'fake smile' all over her face, didn't look good on her. What the hell was going on? Ever since the woman had talked to Jane, she seemed kind of frustrated and annoyed. What did she do wrong? It was probably nothing, but she had a really bad feeling about all this and it would leave her alone.

"I am, how about you?" she questioned, knowing Rose went soon to bed, the woman probably had practiced more than enough.

"I'm sure we'll be able to convince Du Chateau that working together, would only be in his best interest, Mr. Salvatore's a good CEO, he'll be able to charm the man. But did you have enough time to prepare, Elena? I don't know why, but I have a feeling you went to bed late last night," the woman smirked, clearly knowing more.

"What do you mean?" Elena asked affronted. Whatever Rose was up to, it didn't look good. Why else would the woman act so weird?

"Well, I couldn't sleep yesterday so I went to the bar, ready to join you and Mr. Salvatore, but as soon as I got there, I saw the two of you walking out together. Did you go to a disco yesterday?" Rose asked, trying to get some extra information.

"Yes, we did," Elena lied smoothly, hoping Rose wouldn't start to investigate what was really going on between her and their boss. Getting caught would be a disaster, even if Rose wouldn't tell the rest of the directors, there would always be some kind of tension between them and that was exactly what she wanted to prevent.

"Good morning ladies, ready to go?" Damon interrupted, making Elena smile genuinely. She was glad his timing had proven to be so impeccable, cause she had no idea what to say to Rose anymore. She had a bad feeling about the woman, but she wouldn't look further into it. She wanted to spend her time happily with Damon instead of worrying about probably nothing. What was the worst thing that could happen?

Even if Rose suspected something, it will probably fade in a few days. Rose was an important director that was really good at her job, all the other directors respected her; there was no reason for her to work against Elena. She should definitely stop worrying and have fate in Damon and in their relationship. If they are meant to be, they will be, no matter what others would do to keep them apart.

The two women nodded before following their boss towards the exit. Their taxi was already waiting outside. They would have a meeting with Mr. Du Chateau and a few of his directors in the morning, around noon they would be done and have some free time to spend in the city of romance. She was already looking forward to it, knowing that Damon probably had something planned. He was exerting all his effort in making her enjoy her little holiday. Which was working just fine, cause she was already in love with France. Europe definitely had its charm, even if she hadn't seen much of it yet.. The people were nice and friendly, the food was delicious and the city was just amazing. There were so many beautiful buildings; it reminded her of a few movies she saw together with her mother when she was younger. Too bad she couldn't remember their titles; otherwise she could've re-watched them.

"Earth to Elena," she heard a voice say in front of her, when she looked up, she was staring in a pair of ocean blue eyes.

"Sorry, I guess I zoned out," she said blushing. She definitely could use some extra focus today. She should be at her best for an important meeting like this one.

"I guess so," Damon smirked. He didn't know where she went, but it definitely were nice thoughts cause she had a bright smile placed on her lips. Maybe something from her youth; those things always seemed to make her smile. He knew she'd had a rough life after her parents died so it was probably something from when they were still alive. Yeah, this city could bring up some pretty good memories in people. It always reminded him of his time in Italy when he was visiting his grandmother. Damon adored his grandmother; she was always so kind and loving, she never made a difference between her two grandsons; she just loved them both equally. It had been nice to have someone like her in his life, too bad she died two years ago. He didn't even get the time to say goodbye, she died of a heart attack. The doctors had ensured him she hadn't felt a thing and died in peace, but he still felt guilty for not being there when it happened.

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><p>"So Mr. Salvatore, what are our plans for today?" Elena asked smiling when they walked out of the conference room. The other directors had left already, together with Rose so they didn't have to worry about getting caught; which immediately changed her mood, now she could finally stop pretending to be just an employee. She hated the fact that she couldn't have physical contact with him all the time when they were together; her fingers were tingling to touch him. Sometimes it really sucked that he was her boss and not just her <em>boyfriend<em>. She really liked the ring of the word, it sounded so much better than just Damon.

"Who says I have plans for today?" he smirked raising an eyebrow.

"You're always up to something. Do you honestly expect me to believe you're not planning some other romantic afternoon?" she retorted. He just had a plan, she was absolutely sure about it. Only the fact that he didn't want to tell her where they were going was already enough to confirm her suspicions.

"I do have something planned," he admitted giving her a wink, always the mysterious type.

"Can't you just tell me what it is?" she asked pouting. As much as she loved his surprises, she had never been the patient type. Patience could be a virtue, but it was definitely not one she liked. In fact she hated it when she had to wait for something, especially when she didn't know what she was waiting for.

"Pouting Elena, really? I'm sure you can do better than that. Besides, the look on your face when I get to surprise you it's worth the wait."

"You really enjoy making me curious, don't you?" she accused. If he hadn't already driven her crazy, she was sure he would someday soon.

He just shrugged innocently before pulling her hand in his like he did the night before. She immediately felt much better, a relaxed feeling washed over her while a smile crept across her lips.

In that moment, she knew he won their little battle, when he was using all this charm and the innocent smiles, she just couldn't resist him; which meant she was going to have to wait even if she hated waiting .

Outside the building was their cab already waiting for them; she looked up at him for some explanation, but he just gave her a wicked smile and stepped into the car, pulling her with him. She kept quiet during the ride, hoping her silent treatment would work so she would get some answer…it didn't, he was just smirking the entire time, enjoying her reaction.

The traffic was pretty heavy and it took them almost half an hour before they stopped at their destination, an amazing building that made her eyes widen. "Welcome at _le château de Versailles_," Damon smiled when the cab stopped at the parking.

"It's beautiful," Elena said in admiration when she looked around. They walked through a wonderful gate covered in gold and Damon gave her hand a little squeeze. She was absolutely speechless by the beauty of the setting. It wasn't just a palace, it was huge! She'd never seen something quite alike.

"Wait until you see the inside. What would you like to see first?" he asked, happy to see that she liked their destination. He always came to Versailles, when he was in Paris because of its beauty. Not only the palace was beautiful, the gardens outside where simply magnificent as well. "We can go to the gardens, or we can make the grand tour through the palace first. You should see the bedrooms of the king and queen, they're really spectacular."

"I think everything's spectacular here," she answered simply, trying to take every unique detail in.

"Oh, and we should go to the _Galerie des Glaces, _the hall of mirrors_, _it's an enormous room that was the setting of many ceremonies of the French court during the _Ancien Régime_."

"You know a lot about this place, I see," she said actually surprised. She didn't even know he'd been in Paris before, but that was pretty obvious by now.

"Not that much, but yes, I've been here before. Together with Stefan actually, when we stay in Italy we usually travel around Europe too. Let's see the rest of the castle, ok?" She nodded and he wrapped his arm around her waist and started telling more about the building and its rooms.

They'd kept walking around in the gardens. Damon hadn't been lying when he told her they were magnificent, they were even more beautiful. What was even better was that they were so big, there were many hiding places, protecting them from the rest of the world as they were stopping to kiss and cuddle.

It was almost evening when they finally took a cab and went back to the hotel.

"Hey, why are we stopping here?" Elena asked when the cab stopped a few blocks away from the hotel.

"We still have to eat dinner and I just know the perfect place," Damon winked, giving her a cocky grin. He definitely knew how to keep the surprises coming. Every time she thought she knew what he was up to, he surprised her with something new. Although she couldn't say she didn't like it, she loved it even. He was certainly a good distraction; she hadn't worried about their relationship once since they arrived in France. That was definitely a huge progress and she couldn't say she minded. Maybe he was right after all; maybe things could actually work between them without either of them getting hurt.

Damon squeezed her hand as they stopped in front of a little restaurant "This is the best Italian restaurant in Paris, the plates are really authentic; almost like they've been made in Italy. I assume you like pasta?" he asked a little concerned. He'd never really asked her, but she always liked it when he made her spaghetti.

"I do," she smiled. "So, will you take me to Italy one day?" she asked curious. After all the stories he'd told her the previous evening, she really wanted to see the country herself. He was always so passionate when he was talking about his family in Italy and the environment. It made her curious about how it would look like for real. She certainly loved to travel, but her life had been too busy the past few years to actually take a week of and go on a holiday.

"I certainly will," he ensured her before opening the door of the restaurant so she could walk in, always the gentleman, how could she forget. When they walked in a middle aged lady came walking towards them, she was dressed in a classic black dress, which made her look younger. It was definitely a lovely outfit. She should ask Damon to go shopping in Paris the next day, cause she really wanted to buy some nice designer clothes. She usually never bought expensive clothes, but she will make an exception this time. After all, she still needed to buy a dress for the business party at the end of the week.

"Bonjour Monsieur Salvatore, we were expecting you," the woman announced politely. "And who's the beautiful young lady?" she added before looking at Elena. A blush crept across her cheeks when the woman stared at her, approving what she saw.

"Good evening Alessia, it's nice to see you again," Damon said smiling at the woman in front of him. He knew her since they were little, she'd been best friends with his mother, but she moved to France to be with the love of her life, shortly before his mom died. Afterwards she'd come visiting him and Stefan, but his father Giuseppe didn't approve of the woman because she followed her husband to France, which was very weak according to his father. You may never give up your dreams because of love; of course, his father didn't even know what love was. Alessia luckily didn't listen to the old man and she kept visiting even if she wasn't welcome.

"I've arranged the best table for you and your lovely lady, Damon. So, when are you going to marry her?" she asked promptly. For a second, all the blood draw away from his face and he looked like he'd just seen a ghost. That question, he definitely wasn't expecting her to ask.

"It's too soon, I'm afraid," he covered quickly, hoping Elena hadn't seen how uncomfortable he actually was. It wasn't like he didn't want to marry her, but it was just too soon. He didn't even have the guts to tell her he loves her, let alone ask her to marry him.

When he looked aside, he saw he wasn't the only one who wasn't comfortable with Alessia's question. Elena was blushing heavily and she looked at her feet, which she always did when she was nervous. They'd never really talked about marriage. He knew she used to want a family and children, but he didn't know if he was the one she wanted to have a family with. Even after their conversation the day before, he still wasn't sure.

"It's never too soon when you're in love, mon fils." The woman smiled brightly and brought them to their table. It was a romantic spot in the back of the restaurant, there were candles shining on the table and beautiful flowers in the middle. Elena could surely understand why Damon liked this restaurant so much. She felt more relaxed than she had the entire day and her day was already very nice, which meant a lot.

After they'd ordered their food, Alessia left them alone and told them she would be gone for at least half an hour, so they had some privacy. The woman was really too cute for her own good, she was definitely trying to play cupid.

"She really likes you," Damon told her when they were alone, taking her hand in his again. He really did that a lot, but she didn't mind, she liked the physical contact.

"How do you actually know her?" she asked back. She only knew the woman was called Alessia, which made her assume the lady was Italian, but she wasn't sure.

"She was my mom's best friend; they were really close in fact. After mom past away, Alessia came visiting us. She's a great woman, but I don't see her as often anymore. Only when I come to France or when she's visiting my family in Italy. She used to fly to America too, but since Stefan and I are not two lost, teenage boys, she doesn't feel the need to come herself. She's getting older and she doesn't like flying as much as she used to," he explained.

"Do you visit your family in Italy a lot?" she asked curious. The only family she has, are her brother and her aunt. They both live in the same country as her so she doesn't have to travel around the world to see everyone.

"Not as much as I used to, but I always go once a year for Christmas. There's a family feast and everyone's always invited. It's a good way to keep seeing them cause otherwise I wouldn't see them at all, I'm afraid. I don't make much time to travel; I don't like going all alone."

"Good thing you have me now," she winked, earning a smile from him.

"That's certainly a very good thing," he agreed.

They talked about all kind of different subjects, totally losing track of time. It was already late in the evening when they finally got back to the hotel. Elena had asked him if he didn't want to spend the night in her room, but Damon didn't think it was a good idea. Rose was acting weird lately and they had to make sure they wouldn't get caught.

"I can't convince you?" she pouted when the elevator stopped at her room. He gave her a passionate kiss, tasting, savoring…but then he let go and smirked at her.

"Can't survive without my sexy body? Too bad, cause you're going to have to wait!" he winked, looking at her from head to toe, making her feel extremely vulnerable.

She punched him in his stomach and he immediately stopped laughing, trying to look hurt, but failing miserably. "Ass," she hissed, before rolling her eyes and walking towards her room.

"Good night to you too, sweetheart," he shouted after her, but she had already disappeared in her room. As much as he loved surprising her, pissing her off was pretty funny too. He'd make up for it when they got back home, but during their business trip in France, he couldn't afford to get caught. He didn't want to destroy her good name by letting people know they had an affair.

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><p><strong>I'm so incredibly sorry this chapter took me so long! Both me and my beta were on a holiday, so we didn't have much time... forgive me.<strong>

**Although it's a long chapter, so I hope that makes up for it ;) **

**So, are you already enjoying the Paris chapters? The next one will be the last one in Paris, but I truly hope also the best one :D **

**Because it took me so long to update, I will give you a nice spoiler for the next chapter, there will happen something huge, which will only bring them closer together... wonder what's gonna happen? (Ps. It's not that hard to guess, lol)**

**Please review and let me know your thoughts! I'm very curious to see if you liked the chapter! **

**Until next chapter!**

**xoxo**


	20. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own the vampire diaries, though I consider the plot as mine. **

**A/N: As usual, thank you so much Bibi for beta reading my story! You're amazing!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 19<strong>

It was their last day in Paris today and they would finally go see the Eiffel tower, Elena felt pretty excited about it. Of course they'd seen the enormous monument from distance, but she really wanted to stand on top of it so she could look around Paris. From what she'd heard, the view must be marvelous.

"Is my girl ready to go explore more of the beauty in city?" Damon asked smiling when they walked out the hotel. They'd left Rose with some clients so she should be entertained for the rest of the day. They wanted to be alone so badly that they had to make something up so no one would suspect anything.

Rose hadn't shown any signs that she knew something, but they should still be careful After all, Jane and she were close now and every mistake could be fatal. Jane wouldn't hold back from spreading rumors around about them. It was just the type of person Jane was, a lying bitch. No, Elena really didn't like her.

"She's more than ready," Elena smiled. No better way to spend the day then with the man she loved. Maybe she still hadn't told him those three little words, but in her heart, she knew it was the truth, she did love him. She was just searching the right moment to tell him. She wanted it to be special.

"Good, then we're ready to go on a boat trip on the Seine." He gave her a quick wink before leading her into the right direction, towards the water.

"A boat trip? But I thought we would go see the Eiffel tower?" she pouted innocently.

"You didn't think that was the _only_ thing I planned for the whole day, did you? Climbing on a tower won't take an entire day, sweetheart. We'll have enough time to go to the Eiffel tower later today. Besides, don't you want to see that from a boat? It's definitely more spectacular."

"Everything we do is spectacular," she winked, not hiding the double meaning behind her words. "And climbing? Aren't we going to take the elevator?"

"What do you think? Walking all those stairs will be much more fun," he smirked.

"Have you seen my shoes? I'm not going to walk all those stairs on high heels, Salvatore!"

"Good thing I brought you another pair of shoes, right?" he said, giving her a wicked smile. God, the man really thought of everything.

"Still, there are an awful lot of stairs, you know."

"I haven't pictured you for a cowered Miss Gilbert…no, wait, that's actually called 'being lazy," he said with a cocky smile across his face.

"I'm not lazy!" she exclaimed immediately. "I just don' t want to waist our precious time climbing stairs." Come on, Elena, she thought, you can do better than that. She was giving lame excuses instead of just telling him she was kind of tired from their four day trip. Always being proud…sometimes being Elena Gilbert was a hard thing to do.

"If it makes you feel better, I'm not a stairs guy myself, I like elevators much better." He almost burst out in laughter when he saw her face change from annoyed to shock to eventually anger.

"I really don't like you sometimes! You weren't planning on walking those stairs at all!" she yelled, slapping his chest.

He just shrugged innocently, enjoying her outburst. "Nope," he answered, popping the 'p', making her even more furious and annoyed than she already was.

"I really hate you sometimes!" she exclaimed.

"Oh come on, deep down you know you loved it," he said cockily, rolling his eyes.

She didn't bother to answer his cocky comment; his ego didn't need another boost. It was already enough he'd managed to charm Du Chateau and make sure the big deal was settled. She had to admit, he'd been amazing out there convincing the entire room of how beneficial it will be to work together. He was so confident and strong, she really admired him for his courage. Damon may be cocky and confident, but he _did_ have every reason to act that way, he was simply amazing. Although she would never admit that out loud, of course; feeding his ego was one thing, making him believe he was amazing was another. He sure as hell was confident enough already.

"Where going on that thing?" she asked when she saw a huge boat embarking in front of them.

"Nah, I prefer some extra privacy," he winked before pointing at a yacht that looked big enough for at least twenty people. "That will be our transport." She just looked at it, her eyes widen and her mouth opened.

"No," was all that she managed to say, the words got stuck in her throat. When they came closer, she saw a table in front of her that was beautifully made up; there were even candles and roses! It looked so romantic!

"Can you please pinch me so I can be sure I'm not dreaming," she asked after a minute of silence, still not looking at him, the astonishment written all over her face.

"You're not dreaming, Elena," he confirmed, taking her hand in his. "I just thought another surprise wouldn't harm you," he smiled teasingly.

"Are you ever going to stop surprising me?"

"Probably not," he laughed and pulled her with him towards the yacht. He'd really thought of everything. There was soft, romantic music playing in the back ground, lunch already waiting and even candles.

She'd never thought that Damon would be a romantic person, but he clearly was, otherwise he would never have made such a big deal out of their date. He was just very good at hiding his true self. He was much more than just the typical pain in the ass, you just had to see through all those tick walls of his to see he was someone very special, someone trust worthy.

"Do you like it?" he asked softly when they sat down on a huge couch at the end of the yacht. So instead of answering she just turned around to look in his eyes, before giving him a long passionate kiss, showing her appreciation for how much time he put in arranging it all. He was simple the best thing that ever happened to her.

She didn't know how, but suddenly she was sitting in his lap, kissing him with all she had. Her legs were now on each side of his waist, holding him close, like she was afraid he'll run off. Their kiss deepened and she was all over him in no time.

He started nibbling and sucking on her bottom lip, making it impossible for her to think clear. She moaned loudly when her breasts rubbed against his chest. Just when they were about to go further there was a loud knock on the door. "Mr. Salvatore, Lunch's ready," a female voice announced.

Elena pulled back and rolled her eyes…she would've wanted to give that woman a piece of her mind, but she was to polite for that. "We probably should go back upstairs," Damon said, a little annoyed.

On the other hand, he hadn't been planning on making love to Elena on the yacht, maybe it was better to wait until they would be back at the hotel. Rose would fly back around ten; Damon had another meeting with Du Chateau in the morning and Elena had suggested staying and helping him with that, while Rose would make sure everything was going well back home. Now they finally could spend some time together without worrying about getting caught.

He could clearly see that Elena was _not_ happy with the interruption. The thought made him smile, she wanted him as much as he wanted her and that thought alone was enough to make his day better. He'd fought hard enough to make her believe in their relationship, now she was finally showing how much she was into him; it just made him love her more than he already did. She'd finally started opening up to him, letting her walls down and he was very pleased with what he saw, she was a beautiful strong woman who knew how to have fun.

A few minutes later they arrived back on the deck, the food was already served and she had to admit, it smelled pretty good. They both sat down and she couldn't resist digging in, she was just kind of hungry. And if possible, the food tasted even better than it smelled; she couldn't say she was surprised though, she knew Damon wouldn't go for anything less than the best. "How do you even know all these amazing cooks? " she asked amazed while eating.

"I've a long history of traveling behind of me. I made a few great connections," he answered with a wink.

"I'm sure you have, but still you never met the right woman," she stated. It was a surprise that a great man as Damon never found the love of his life up until now. Not that she minded, but still, it was kind of weird.

"Not until you came back to me, I've always known you were someone special. I just never got the time to get to know you," he said still smiling, it was the first time they talked about it without all the anger and disappointment. He wasn't accusing her; he was just talking about their past and it made her feel kind of relieved. He'd clearly forgiven her and moved on, something she was very grateful for.

"I'm glad I did come back," she smiled, truly happy. At first, she'd been devastated that it was him who was her new boss, but now it seemed more like a blessing. Faith had brought them back together and they would stay this way.

He couldn't stop smiling; she'd just admitted she was happy he was in her life again. That was like, a huge step; she'd never said something quite alike before. She'd told him she'd made a mistake and that she was sorry, but she'd never told him she was glad to have him back in her life. His heart had made several little jumps when she'd told him, it was actually still thundering in his chest.

"I'm glad you did too," he answered, taking her hand in his and giving it a squeeze. "_Very_ glad actually." The tension in the room was strong and sensible and all they could do was look in each other's eyes, both amazed by what they were feeling. He couldn't even start to describe what he was feeling, there were no words that could describe the love he felt for her, nothing that would do his feelings justice. He'd never in his entire life met someone that could compare to the angel that was sitting in front of him.

"Mr. Salvatore, you're limo is waiting at the port entrance," the female declared, breaking their trance…_again_. Elena was _really_ starting to dislike the woman and she didn't even know her name. She'd totally forgotten to ask Damon who the owners of the yacht were. But wait…did she say limo?

"Don't look so surprised," she heard Damon say. "You didn't think we would walk towards the Eiffel tower, did you?"

"We could've taken a cab like normal people do," she uttered when Damon stood up and started to walk towards the exit of the boat.

"But we're not normal people, are we?" he smirked while taking her hand and leading her back to the port, leaving the yacht behind them. She'd definitely enjoyed their little escape from reality, the view on the ship had been magnificent and she would surely do it again some other time. It was pretty clear by now that Damon wouldn't give up surprising her, he just kept going. She was getting overwhelmed from all of it, she never knew what was ahead of her.

She'd heard the woman right, there was indeed a limo waiting for them, a big, black, beautiful limo. The driver was already holding the door open so they would step in. Once inside, Damon took a bottle of champagne out from the mini bar and opened it. "Want a glass?" he asked giving her a marvelous smile. How the hell could she resist something like that? So instead of thinking about the fact that she already tipsy from the two glasses of wine she had during lunch, she just nodded and he handed her a glass.

"To us," he clinked, looking her in the eyes. She could feel his gaze burning on hers, the intense way he was gazing at her made Elena feel vulnerable.

"To us," she agreed giving him one of her happiest smiles. She couldn't start to describe how special he made her feel. Even if the words were still unspoken, she could feel the love radiating from his body. It was a strong and shining spark between them that no one could ever take away.

After they both drank from their glass, they put it on top of a table and Elena nestled herself against his chest while he wrapped his arms around her, making her feel more comfortable. She could stay like that forever; it made her feel safe, it was the place where she belonged, with Damon. She looked up, only to see him staring down at her, when their eyes met she could feel a wild fire going through her veins, knocking out all her thoughts and making her kiss him, over and over again. She would never get enough of him, it was just impossible. Their tongues battled for dominance, while Damon's hands started rooming over her body.

Of course it was too good to be true, the car stopped and the driver let them know they'd arrived at their destination. Ugh, why did everyone need to interrupt them every time they were starting something _interesting_? She couldn't believe how turned on she'd gotten from only _four_ days without sex. She was really feeling like a teenage girl who lost her mind.

Damon just gave her an understanding smile before their driver opened the door. He gave the man some bills and nodded that he could go. He must've been very generous cause the driver had a huge smile placed on his face and thanked him more than once.

Hand in hand they walked towards the pay desk, luckily the row wasn't too long and they had their tickets within five minutes. She started to feel anxious again, that tower was really high. It wasn't like she was scared of heights, but this could be called an exception.

Damon immediately felt her tense up beside him and started to caress the back of her hand, already understanding she wasn't feeling well about going in the elevator.

'Great move Salvatore! You didn't even ask her if she was afraid of heights', he told himself.

"Are you okay? If you don't want to, we can just go to the first platform. I know it's pretty high."

"No, no, I'm fine," she assured him. "It's just higher than I thought it would be."

"Yeah, I know the feeling," he smiled, hoping she really was fine. He'd hate it if he'd made her do something she actually didn't want to.

"Really," she said again, when she felt him tense up this time. She didn't want to make him feel concerned, but she just got a little overwhelmed. "If it makes you feel better, we'll just go to the first platform and I'll decide then if I want to go to the third one or not."

Damon nodded, feeling better already. He'd make sure she felt secure and maybe then they'd go to the highest platform. He didn't want to push her buttons. After all, the only thing he wanted was to make her happy.

A bright smile was placed on Elena's lips when they stood on the first platform, the view was already breath taking. She'd never seen something quite alike before. She could even see the boats sailing on the Seine, it was beautiful. "This is amazing," she sighed happily, when he wrapped his arms around her body, standing behind her.

"It is," he whispered in her ear before nibbling on the shell. She couldn't hold back the moan that slipped from her lips, it just felt too good.

Suddenly he let go of her and took her hands in his, forcing her to face him. "Elena, you can't believe how happy you make me by just being here," he said seriously.

"I'm happy to be here, too. I wouldn't know what to do without you anymore," she admitted, slightly surprised by the seriousness in his eyes.

He gave her a weak smile, fighting the tears that started to well up in his eyes. "I love you, Elena, and I know it's soon, but I want you to know just how special you are to me. I've never met someone quite like you and I couldn't bear watching you walk away again."

With that he wasn't the only one anymore fighting the tears, she gave his hands a little squeeze back and tried to form a coherent sentences, without her voice breaking all the time. "I love you too, Damon. I don't know how it happened, the only thing I know is that it overwhelms me every day just how much you mean to me. I love you so much. You won't have to lose me," she ensured before pulling him in a hug, letting her tears roll over her cheeks. She couldn't believe how happy she felt in that moment, it was like all the pieces finally were put together and her heart was whole again. She'd never imagined to ever feel that way and she was sure she would never feel happier than in that moment.

"God, you make me so happy," she smiled through the tears, with that she gave him the most passionate kiss she could, showing him just how true her words were. He wouldn't lose her; she would stay with him forever. There was no chance in hell she would run again. Because running wouldn't just mean breaking his heart, it would mean shattering her own heart into pieces too.

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><p><strong>Tada! The moment you all have been waiting for! It was getting time, hm? I hope you all enjoyed their trip to Paris, cause next chapter they will be going back to the States. <strong>

**Review if you would like a few spoilers! ;) **

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><p><strong>A little question, what do you prefere the most? That I first finish this story, before I start my new one? Or that I publish the new one? I've finished this story in Word, so don't worry, I won't abandon it! Please let me know what you like the most cause I'm gonna listen to my readers for once, lol :D <strong>

**Xoxo**


	21. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer:**** I still don't own the vampire diaries. **

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><p><strong>Chapter 20<strong>

Groggily Elena opened her eyes; it was her first morning being back in the States. When she turned around she saw Damon was still asleep. He looked so cute and innocent; she loved admiring him when he was asleep. Most of the time he was the first to wake up and she couldn't see him asleep, so she was very happy she could take advantage of a beautiful morning like this one.

They'd arrived home late at night. After their little moment on the Eiffel tower they'd made love several times, actually so many times that she lost count.

She decided to surprise Damon and crawled over him until she was lying on top of his chest, starting to place little butterfly kisses everywhere. "Hm, morning," was Damon's reaction when he started to wake up.

"Good morning, love," she smiled before kissing his lips; he immediately reacted and opened his mouth as an invitation she gladly took. She could feel the bulge growing underneath her, begging for attention; they were still naked under the sheets, which made it easy for her to slip her hand on his chest, down his abs and finally… she gave him a smirk before taking his cock in her hand.

His eyes immediately shot open at her sudden movement, making him growl. Oh, she just loved waking him up like that. It gave her so much control over him and she totally loved being in control. A smirk came across her lips as she started stroking him at a quick pace, bringing him soon to oblivion. Watching that pure satisfaction written all over his face and listening to his sexy noises, was such a turn on.

She let out a moan when he started massaging her breasts, before taking a nipple in his mouth and sucking on it. Damn, she was trying to drive him crazy and instead she was the one having the biggest trouble with controlling herself. Her body was throbbing with need and she wanted to feel him buried deep inside of her so desperately.

He knew too well how to push her buttons and in matter of seconds she as ready to have him enter her, but before she could sank down on his member, he rolled them over and gave her a wicked smile; he was _clearly_ done with letting her have control. Damn it, just when she was having so much fun.

Before she could blink he pushed himself inside her wetness, making them both moan loudly, how was is possible that he felt better and better inside of her, each time they made love? She just couldn't get enough of him; it made her feel like a horny teenager all over again.

He didn't give her time to think before starting to thrust inside her at a fast pace, giving them both the satisfaction they craved. When he started to work her clit, she thought she was seeing stars. His thrusts were strong and deep, hitting her sweet spot every time. He really knew what she needed the most. Their eyes locked and they kept staring at each other in awe, making the moment more intimate than it already was. She loved watching him during sex, plus it was so much hotter when they kept looking at each other.

With one hand she was ranking her nails into his back, while the other was buried away in his hair, pushing his mouth on hers so she could nibble at his lips. This was really the best way to start the day; she truly started to love morning sex. Waking up in Damon's arms was already amazing, but making love first thing in the morning…it made it all even better.

Her walls started to tighten around his cock, she was so close! It didn't take long before her orgasm hit her at full force, the world started to shatter into little pieces, the blood rushing through her veins…it felt like she was in heaven.

Feeling her come undone in his arms was more than enough to push him over the edge as well. If you could die from an orgasm, he'd sure be deep under the ground by now.

They were both trying to catch their breath, satisfied with their morning activities. "You're such a little minx early in the morning," he smiled at her when he was able to talk again, pulling her close in his arms again. It gave her a save feeling when he did that.

"Like you care, I just rocked your world," she smirked, looking up, searching his eyes.

He just winked at her and gave her a sweet kiss, which turned out to be more passionate then he'd intended it to be…and there goes round two.

* * *

><p>When Rose arrived at the office the following day, Jane immediately got straight to the point and started asking what had happened during the trip in Paris, hoping for some tasty gossips. After all, she really needed some information about Elena. She'd always dreamed of a job as a director and Elena's had just the best one!<p>

"Jesus, calm down, Jane! Can't you let me walk in peacefully?" Rose asked annoyed. The secretary really had no shame. She couldn't believe she was actually helping such a bitch, did the woman really believe she would ever get a job as a director? She's not even half as smart as most of the other woman who worked in their building.

"So what do you have?" the secretary hissed, hoping the director brought her something real to work with.

"If I were you I'd watch my mouth before I change my mind and decide all these is not worth it," the director exclaimed, she didn't need people talking that disrespectful to her.

"Okay, okay. So tell me, what do you got on Gilbert?" the woman asked impatiently. It wasn't like she had the entire day, there was still a lot of work to do and the others would arrive in a few minutes. She didn't want to be seen with her 'companion'.

"You won't believe it!" Rose said less mad. She still couldn't believe what she saw herself; she never thought she'd find such information about Elena. She always thought of her as a professional business woman, she would never have guessed that the woman slept with her boss in order to keep her job. What else could be going on? It wasn't like playboy Damon Salvatore would go for a real relationship, let alone with one of his employees.

"Can you just tell me already?" Jane said with an eye roll, she was getting tired of waiting.

"She's having an affair with Mr. Salvatore!" the director smirked. Normally she would've felt bad for betraying one of her co-workers, but she knew there was nothing else she could do about it. If she wouldn't help Jane, the woman would release some dirty news about her, it wasn't like she could afford to lose her job. She lost her husband Travis already after he found out about the affair she had been having with her other co-worker Elijah. If Damon would find out what was going on between the two of them, he would most definitely fire her; since relationships at work weren't aloud. Not like her boss was following those rules himself, but she wouldn't risk it.

"What?" Jane asked shocked. "You can't be serious? Oh my god! I knew something was going on!" The secretary's mood immediately changed.

"Yeah, I couldn't believe it either! I even have pictures from the hotel's elevator, don't ask me how I got them, but I can tell, they're amazing. The perfect evidence, I hope you're happy now!" Rose told her, feeling bad already. She couldn't believe she was actually ruining Elena's life, how selfish! There was no going back anymore; not now anyway.

"Not too fast, Rose. I'm not finished with you, not as long as I don't have the job I want."

"No? Then when are you finally going to leave me alone?" she asked raising an eyebrow. "What if you don't get the job? I don't know what you're even planning on doing with the information I gave you…"

"Blackmailing Salvatore of course, into getting what I want. I'm sure you've already thought about that yourself, didn't you? Believe me, he won't be able to say no and I will get that job. If not, we'll see what you're going to do next. Don't forget Rose, you're now completely under my spell and you'll do everything I tell you to do."

"Are you serious?" the director answered sharply, rolling her eyes at the silliness of the secretary. Did the woman really think she'd do everything to help her?

Sometimes she couldn't believe how desperate Jane actually was. For a little more than four years now, the woman had been trying to get a job as a director. Of course their former CEO wouldn't budge; the man knew Jane wasn't capable of being a proper director.

"We'll see about that," the secretary smiled wickedly.

* * *

><p>A few hours later Damon walked into the building, immediately getting a note from Jane that he had a meeting at ten o'clock. There was no name, it only said there was a meeting, without reading too much into it he started with the pile of work that was lying on his desk. He'd only been away for four days, but there was a lot to do.<p>

He would've loved to stay home a few extra hours, but when he saw the mess on his desk, he knew he made the right decision by coming to work instead. He and Elena had made love the entire morning, _and the night before, and in Paris_…Damn, the list was getting long, no wonder he felt so exhausted, satisfied, but still exhausted.

He really should let her get some rest; she was looking pretty tired today. Maybe he should go to his own apartment for the night…nah, he wouldn't be able to stay away from her. They practically lived together, he was never home. Even Stefan was getting suspicious and that sure as hell didn't happen a lot. His brother was always too lazy to actually notice his older brother was gone. Then again, Damon usually never slept at home, he always found some random girls who liked to have him stay over for a day, or a week…it depended on how much time it took for him to get bored.

There had been a few girls that caught his attention, but not the way Elena had. They were educated and beautiful women and it was fun while it lasted, but sooner or later he would find them some fault and use it to end the relationship. Call him crazy, but with Elena…it was different, he even loved her faults.

A sudden knock on the door brought him back from his thoughts and he told the person to come in. When he looked at his watch he saw it was almost ten, he almost forgot his meeting…wait, who was the person he had a meeting with?

"Mr. Salvatore," Jane said when she walked in.

"Oh Jane, there you are. Really, perfect timing," he sighed. "Who's this person I have a meeting with? Cause my agenda just said I had a meeting, but not with who," he explained himself, hoping it wasn't an important client who he forgot about. He usually prepared his meetings in advance, but since he didn't know who it was, it made it practically impossible to prepare for the meeting.

"Actually, _we_ will be having a meeting this morning, sir," the girl smirked. Something was wrong he could feel it. There was just too much confidence radiating from the woman in front of him.

"Why exactly is it that we are having a meeting, Jane?" he asked suspicious.

"I wanted to recommend myself as the new director of the department research and development when you fire Elena." What? Did the girl go insane or something?

"Why on earth would you think I would fire Miss. Gilbert? Look, I know you want her job, but she is a good employee and…"

"Oh, please; _Miss. Gilbert_…" Jane mocked. "You and I both know it's just formality. You will give me her job, or I'll feel obligated to share some information with the shareholders…after all, it's all about policy, the woman exclaimed, letting her mask fall and showing the real Jane, the one Elena hated so much. Right now, he felt like a fool for not believing his girlfriend, this woman…she was definitely insane. Why in hell would he ever fire Elena? She was a great director, who always did her work just fine.

"Is that a threat?" he asked.

"Oh, no sir, it's not a threat…more like a warning. If you still have doubts I'm more than qualified for the job, here's something to help you decide," she smirked while throwing the pictures all over his desk. "You can shred them, burn them or flush them down the toilet, I have another set in my purse, another at the computer at work and another one safe at home," She let out a cruel laughter and studied his shocked face. "What? Did you really think you could keep hiding your dirty little secret? Luckily I'm still here, isn't it?"

"Where did you get these pictures, Jane?" he hissed. How on earth was it possible that the woman could get these pictures? There were so many of them, on their first night out in Paris, the Italian restaurant, the boat trip…even from when they were making out in the elevator. Where did the little bitch get these from? Did she hire a private investigator?

"I have my sources," she smiled wickedly.

"Rose?" he asked shocked and surprised at the same time, he'd thought she'd been a loyal coworker, he'd never guessed she would betray him like this. "You've got to be kidding me," he said while shaking his head.

"Surprised? I must admit, I didn't think she had the guts myself, but as you can see…she's done an amazing job. So what's it going to be, Salvatore?"

"Can't you at least give me some time to think things through?" he asked annoyed by her behavior. He was boiling on the inside, where did this woman get the guts to threaten him? He was Damon fucking Salvatore; didn't she know who she was playing with?

"You mean to prepare a plan to destroy me before I destroy you? Nope," she said while popping the 'p'.

"No, I mean to make it look like there's an actual reason to fire her. Everyone on board loves her; they're not going to let me fire her if she's done nothing wrong; you should know that." The lie came out easier than he thought, luckily. Maybe he should ask his brother for help, after all, the guy could easily hack someone's computer after all the nerdy studies he did.

"Not my problem, Salvatore. You've got one day, with that I literally mean 24 hours before I send an email to all our shareholders and employees, including your precious Du Chateau. I'm sure that'll destroy a lot more than one career," she smiled victoriously before standing up and leaving a shocked Damon behind her.

He couldn't lose the contract with Du Chateau; that would indeed destroy more than one career. He'd be a dead man if he lost this game. More importantly he couldn't afford to lose Elena, she meant way more to him than a stupid contract.

* * *

><p><strong>And there you've Jane! As I told you, here's the drama again! Already wishing I'd kill the woman? :D<strong>

**As you can see, I decided to first finish this story before starting the new one (don't worry, I will write it). Why? Well first of all, most of you wanted me to, secondly, I don't want to let you guys wait too long to get an update for this story and I'm afraid that's exactly what'll happen when I do start the other story. **

**Then, for the ones who are interested, this story will have a total of 26 chapter, including the prologue and epilogue. Which means, we only have four real chapters left after this one and of course, my epilogue! **

**I can't believe we're coming so close to its ending! I'm really gonna miss this story and all of you guys, of course! **

**xoxo**


	22. Chapter 21

**A/N:**** I know, I know, it's been a while again. I could say am terribly sorry (which I am) and that it'll get better, but that would be lying. I'm super busy at the moment and it won't get better any time soon. I'm in my last year of high school which is a pretty big deal to me. Teachers just don't understand we need our free time and school's too important to forget about. It's my future after all.**

**But my chapters are a little longer than they used to be so I hope that makes up for it! **

**And we reached 400 reviews! Thank you guys, it really means a lot to me! It's the reason I'm still writing after all! Also a big thank you to my great, great beta! There's a reason my writing improves and it's all thanks to her! :D**

**Now on with the chapter!**

**Disclaimer:**** I still don't own the vampire diaries and I'll probably never will. **

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><p><strong>Chapter 21<strong>

When his watch hit seven o'clock, Damon hastily took his coat ready to leave the building. He needed to get to Stefan as soon as possible, hoping his brother could help him out before his career was ruined. He'd never fire Elena, that wasn't an option. So he had to make sure he got the pictures destroyed before Jane will be able to mail them.

As soon as he reached the hallway he knew he'd made a mistake. How could he forget that Elena was still at work? Wasn't there _a thing_ that could go right today?

"Hey…where are you going?" Elena asked surprised when she almost bumped into Damon. They agreed to work late tonight so they could go home together without anyone seeing them. Since they got back from Paris, they didn't leave each other's side more than necessary. She was actually already thinking of asking him to move in with her so he didn't have to go home to get his stuff. Although, she had the slightest feeling it may be too soon to ask him, she felt pretty confident about it though.

"I got a phone call earlier, Stefan needs me," he lied, but he could tell Elena wasn't buying it by the way she looked at him. She knew him too well, when most of the time he appreciated that she always saw through him, at the moment, he thought it was a big disadvantage. He didn't want her to worry.

"Nothing too serious, I hope?" she said anyways, probably trusting him enough not to start assuming the worst. He really hated lying to her, but there was no other option. If he told her the truth, she would immediately resign, just to make sure he wouldn't lose his job. Yeah, she was selfless and kind like that.

"I don't think so. He's probably just having troubles with running the household," he winked. "Or he just misses me an awful lot," he answered, trying to lighten up the mood.

"Okay," Elena answered hesitant. "Although, I'm sure Caroline can help him out with that, they're practically together all the time. She told me herself, she always sleeps over. By the way, I really don't think he misses you that much!"

"I really should go now, sweetheart. See ya later, ok?" he shrugged, hoping she wouldn't be mad at him for bailing on their plans. He gave her hand a light squeeze before turning around,

He would've loved kissing her, but the chances were too high that someone would see them. Today was already going _from bad to worse_ he really didn't want to take the risk.

"Sure," she answered a bit too quickly, letting him know she indeed knew he was lying. Damn, he really hated doing this to her, but there was no other way. She would forgive him eventually, but he knew he was torturing her at the moment. the thought of just killing Jane crossed his mind more than once, that little bitch just ruined his happiness for a stupid job that she most definitely wasn't even capable of doing anyway!

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><p>What the hell was that all about, Elena thought when she saw Damon leaving the building. He was just lying in her face! It was so obvious! Why on earth did he have to lie to her? Wasn't a relationship all about trust and respect for one another? She really thought he trusted her enough to always tell the truth. What could be so bad that he couldn't tell her?<p>

He wouldn't…nah, he would never cheat on her, would he? She was starting to feel very insecure…she was so sure he did love her, but then again, why would he lie? Their time in Paris had been so wonderful; he wouldn't just throw that away, right?

"What's wrong, hun?" she heard her best friend ask, once she returned in her office; her face a little pale from the shock she just got. The man she loved was hiding something and she really hated it! He should've told her the truth instead of lying in her face. She just didn't know how to react; she was too shocked at the time.

"Nothing," she shrugged, clearly _not_ wanting to talk about it. She plopped down on her office chair and started playing nervously with her pen, thinking about reasons why Damon would actually lie to her. Gosh, she was turning into 'brooding Elena' again. Damn it!

"Sure Lena…and I'm the queen of England," her assistant rolled her eyes. "Out with it, already!"

"Really Care? Didn't you get the hint or something? I don't want to talk about it!" she exclaimed, getting mad at the wrong person. She shouldn't be yelling at her best friend; she knew Caroline was only trying to do the right thing.

"Yeah I got the hint, you're not really a subtle person, you know. I get it you don't want to talk about it, but I think you should! You always start brooding when something's wrong instead of just talking to me. I don't know what's bothering you at the moment, but something clearly is and I want to know what's going on. Did you have a fight with Damon?" she pushed. If she won't say anything, Elena wouldn't either. She knew her friend well enough to realize she needed a little push.

She just shook her head, still too stubborn to tell her friend what the real problem was. How could she talk about something she didn't understand herself? After they came back from Paris, she'd been thrilled to tell Caroline everything about their trip, how Damon told her he loved her and how great he was. How could she tell her friend that she was being suspicious now?

"Elena? Please talk to me!" Caroline tried again. She knew there was something wrong, otherwise her best friend wouldn't act this way. The only thing she wanted was to help her, but how could she help if she didn't even know what was wrong in the first place?

"It's Damon," she admitted after a long pause. "He…he lied to me."

"Are you sure? About what?" her friend asked surprised. After the stories she'd heard about their rendezvous in Paris, she didn't think Damon would deliberately lie to Elena. He sounded head over heels in love, only when they exchanged looks, Caroline could clearly see the sparks flying across the room between the two of them.

"Yes, I'm sure, very sure. He isn't a good liar, certainly not when he's face to face with me." She shook her head and started pacing around the office, trying to find the right words to tell her best friend about her worries. "He left the office for some kind of reason and he doesn't want to tell me why and what really bothers me is that he's lying about it. Why can't he just be honest with me and tell me what's really going on?"

"Oh my god, Lena, that's what's bothering you?" Caroline smiled relieved, suppressing a giggle. "Don't you get it? He's probably arranging a surprise or something, of course he can't tell you the truth!" the woman exclaimed joyful, always being the optimistic.

"You think?" she asked shyly Oh lord, she was acting like a jealous fool. Why couldn't she just trust Damon instead of starting to worry? Damn, maybe Caroline was right indeed, maybe he was just arranging something.

It was stupid to doubt him; she didn't even understand why she did. He was always so nice and he would do just about anything for her. There was no reason to worry about it, but still she couldn't help it.

"Of course Elena, why else would he lie to you? And don't start with the 'maybe he's seeing someone else' crap, cause we both know how he feels about you. He wouldn't betray you like that, so…he's planning something…" the woman explained cheerful, being positive as always.

"I haven't even thought about that option…I just started to… But it could be true," she answered a bit relieved.

"It probably is true," her friend stated smiling.

Elena nodded her head. "You're right. And I feel so bad…the little green monster got to me in a very bad way. I can't believe I instantly started doubting our relationship. Damon's done so much for me, and now I was thinking badly of him when he deserves _so_ much better," she answered ashamed.

Her friend came walking towards her and pulled her in for a hug, "Trust me, you've nothing to worry about. I'm sure you'll have a beautiful future with Damon. Just never doubt yourself or your relationship again, okay?"

"Thanks Care," she smiled, hugging her friend closely, "You're the best!" Sometimes she really needed someone to reassure her and make sure she doesn't do anything stupid…like, doubting her boyfriend.

Caroline let out a giggle, "Yeah right, until we go shopping again and I'll start pushing you into the fitting rooms."

"Good that you remind me to never go shopping with you again, going with Anna's probably a good solution," she winked, giggling.

"Speaking of," Caroline said more serious again, "How is she; and your brother for that matter?" Even if she'd only seen the girl in the hospital, Caroline was very fond of Anna. They were already hitting it off as friends; maybe they should go out some time, just the three of them and have some girls' time.

"Good…really good actually, Jeremy's more at her apartment than he is home. I think they're getting pretty serious. Not that I mind, I'm very happy that my brother finally found someone to share his life with, someone trust worthy. After Vicky…I really thought he would never find happiness."

The blonde nodded her head, "I truly understand what you're saying. That girl had such a bad influence on Jeremy, he's very lucky that he found Anna after what happened in the past. You see, sometimes you've to keep faith that everything will be alright. You're brother's happy now, you're happy and I'm sure it'll stay that way forever!"

"I really think you read too many novels, life's not a fairytale," Elena said, trying to be realistic. She didn't want to keep her hopes up, if something would go wrong, she'd be devastated. She'd love to actually believe her friend and trust her on this one, but she knew it wasn't save…not for her feelings anyway, she didn't want to get hurt again.

"You're right, life's not a fairytale at all, but it isn't a nightmare either. I truly believe that you'll find happiness, you just have to believe it yourself."

"Trust me, I believe it too much already," she answered, shaking her head. He makes her feel so much stronger, he makes her feel like she's capable of doing everything she wants and it scares the hell out of her. She'd never been so confident, she wasn't _that_ girl…or was she? She'd always thought she was just a workaholic, quiet kind of person.

She was just starting to see her old self again, the party girl that was strong, confident and enjoying herself. Maybe she really was that special woman she pretended to be by keeping her walls up, maybe there was really more about her than what she previously thought.

* * *

><p>Damon was impatiently waiting in his apartment hoping his brother would come out of the bathroom soon.<p>

"Stefan? What the hell is taking you so long?" he yelled again. He'd been knocking on the door and yelling for more than half an hour already, but he knew his baby brother just liked to shoo him and it was working damned well.

"I'll be there in a sec," his brother yelled back, clearly annoyed by Damon's impatience.

"You already said that ten minutes ago," Damon fired back, his patience was really far gone by now and he was already thinking about ways to unlock the door, he'd destroy the stupid door if possible, but he didn't want to hurt himself, not for his damned brother! Why the fuck couldn't the guy come out? Cursing probably wouldn't help, but he couldn't hold back his anger. He just wanted to save his relationship, that's all.

Suddenly the door cracked open and he immediately pulled his brother outside, mad that he let him wait so long. "Calm down, I'm here," Stefan tried, but he didn't let go and pushed him into the nearest chair, hovering over him.

"Don't ever let me wait that long again," he exclaimed furiously, looking his baby brother straight in the eye; he was probably very intimidating looking all mad like that, but he didn't really care about his brother's feeling at that particular moment. He was just _fucking_ mad. His brother probably didn't deserve this, but at the moment he couldn't think straight anymore. The only thing that crept in his mind was the beautiful smile on Elena's lips, and how it would disappear and their relationship would be destroyed if he didn't stop his stupid moron of a secretary.

"Jesus Damon, what the hell is going on? Why are you acting this way?" Stefan demanded, trying to catch some air, which wasn't exactly easy when his brother's hands were on his throat, holding him with just enough pressure not to choke him.

Damon let out a deep breath and tried to relax a little, there was no reason to take this out on his brother; it wasn't like Stefan did anything wrong besides letting him wait too long. "I need your help," he said when he calmed down enough not to start yelling again and stepped back, giving his brother an apologizing look.

"Okay…what do you need?" his brother asked worried. Damon had never asked Stefan r for help his help before…_never_. There had to be something seriously wrong if he did so. It was way too suspicious.

"You're good at hacking computers, right?" he stated, hoping his brother would understand why he was so pissed off.

"You should reformulate that, awesome suits me better," he teased. "So yes, I'm a talent at hacking computers. Did I already mention that I hacked your biggest concurrent' computer? I was just practicing my skills and…"

"Yeah, yeah, tell me another time, ok?" he cut in, not interested in his brother's pursuits. He already knew Stefan was good; he just needed to know what he could do for him to help solve this mess.

"Sure, but why do you need me? Whose computer do I need to hack?"

"A secretary of mine, she's trying to blackmail me."

"What?" Stefan asked surprised and furious at the same time. "Why the hell would someone want to blackmail you? Who's the bitch?" They maybe didn't act like it, but they both loved each other very much, they were brothers after all and Stefan would kill the person that tried to fool with his brother. He would take the bitch down.

"Jane, she wants me to fire Elena and give her, her job," he answered a little regarding the circumstances, he didn't have a choice.

"You mean _the_ Elena? The one that turned you into a crazy love sick fool?" Stefan joked, holding back a laugh.

"That's the one," he answered, rolling his eyes. He definitely wasn't a love sick fool…or…Nope, he wasn't, couldn't be true.

"So what does she have on you to be able to blackmail you? Nothing too serious I hope?" his brother asked slightly worried.

"Serious enough," Damon answered looking down, he felt so humiliated right now; he couldn't believe he let this happen. How stupid of him to let Rose come with him, he should've known better and leave everyone behind except from Elena. "She has some pictures that you need to destroy."

"Pictures of?" Stefan pushed. He had to know what he was searching for if his brother really wanted the pictures gone.

He was no fool, he knew what could be in those pictures, but he needed to be sure.

"Elena and me together…in Paris, they're bad enough to get the two of us fired, even if I'm the boss. The shareholders won't be too happy if they see them. 'No mixing of business and pleasure' – it's in everyone's contract, there's no way I can defend myself properly without leaving the business." The craziest part was, he didn't even mind leaving the business and start fresh. He'd do everything for Elena, even quitting his job. What he _didn't_ want was to see Elena's name destroyed, not after she worked as hard as she did all those years. She deserved a lot better than that.

"I see," Stefan nodded, trying to look for a solution. "So it won't be an easy job?" he asked frowning.

Damon shook his head, it would've been a lot easier if she didn't have copies on her computer at home, but he truly hoped his brother would be able to find a solution for the problem. He knew it wouldn't be easy, but his brother just _had_ to get the job done. He didn't know what else he would do. He'd be devastated.

"Hacking the computer's probably not that hard, besides the fact that it's illegal as hell of course. That's also where we'll have a problem, I can try to hack it without leaving too many' traces, but doing it all alone…I'm not sure if it'll work. I'm good at it, but still far from being a professional."

Stefan sighed. Damn, this wasn't going to be an easy job at all, but he had to try. He had to save his brother before someone could destroy his career.

"Don't you know someone who we can trust, someone that's more of a professional?" he suggested. Jesus, did he really just say what he thought he did?

"It's a serious crime Damon, you're sure you want to go that far?" his brother asked surprised. The man was really head over heels in love. It was starting to freak him out. It was even worse than the way he felt about Caroline.

"I'll do everything in my power to get those files and secure my relationship with Elena. I can't lose her," he said, his voice cracking a little in the end, the pure emotions floating in his words. He hated being so vulnerable in front of his little brother, but he just couldn't hold back. He had to do everything in his power not to fall apart and keep fighting. He knew it was a stupid plan to break into Jane's computer, but he just couldn't find another way out.

Stefan nodded and gave his brother a pat on the shoulder, "I'll help you."

He gave his brother a small smile, praying that their plan would work.

* * *

><p>It was already late at night when Damon finally returned to Elena's apartment. Elena had been awake all along; she just hadn't been able to sleep when she didn't know what was going on.<p>

The only thing she knew for sure was that she wouldn't start asking him tons of questions probably over nothing; she didn't want to be that kind of girlfriend. She didn't want to act jealous; she needed to give him an honest chance to explain.

When he crawled into bed besides her, she nestled herself against his chest until she lay more comfortable. "How was Stefan?" she asked softly, trying to sound interesting instead of curious. She didn't want to let him know just how insecure she actually was.

"Good I suppose," he answered after a while, surprised she was still awake. He'd certainly thought that she would be fast asleep by now. "He was just having some _male_ issues and yeah, you know we started talking and…"

"Drinking?" she questioned, when she suddenly smelled his breath.

"That too," he shrugged, hoping she wouldn't have a problem with it.

"Ok," was her simple answer. "Can you text me next time you stay that long? I was getting slightly worried," she added, hoping she wouldn't sound too controlling. She wanted to give him his freedom, but then he had to tell her the truth…always.

"Yeah, sure. I'm sorry. I didn't think you'd be worried. I'll let you know next time my brother decides to take advantage of my free time." He was really surprised, of course he'd thought she'd think of him, but he didn't think she'd be worried so soon. He really underestimated his girlfriend sometimes.

He pulled her a little closer to his chest and nestled his face in the crook of her neck, spooning her perfectly, like they were made for each other. He really couldn't believe how lucky he was to have this girl in his arms every night, the only thing he could hope for was that no one would take her away from him…ever. He'd be devastated if something like that would happen, he wouldn't let that happen. She was his and she would stay his forever, no one would come between them. Not even his stupid secretary, he'd make sure of that.

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><p><strong>I hope you all liked the new chapter! For Elena's reaction, she's still really insecure and afraid to lose him, so yes she thinks there's more going on, but she gives him the benifit of the doubt.<strong>

**Next chappie we'll see if their plan will work... if Damon will be able to bring Jane down!**

**Please leave me a review and let me know what you think! **

**xoxo**


	23. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: I don't own the vampire diaries.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 22<strong>

In the morning she woke up…alone in her big bed, which was weird since the only time when Damon got out of bed before her was when the hospital called to tell them that Jeremy was okay and maybe once more after that...urgh, she couldn't remember. She let out a loud yawn before finally getting out of bed. It was then that she saw the little note on her bedside table. She picked it up and started reading what her boyfriend wrote her.

_Morning sleepyhead, I still had some business to attend to today. Don't worry about me, I'll see you tonight. Maybe you should call Caroline? I'm sure she's up for a little shopping trip. Love Damon._

Business to attend to? Since when was business more important than her? Didn't he always tell her their relationship came first? It _really_ couldn't wait until she woke up? Of course it had been nice of him to think about what else she could do when he wasn't home, but still…

Besides, it was Friday, she had to go to work…what was he thinking? So he wouldn't be at work himself? It was just crazy, why would he act so mysterious about a surprise and even forget about his own responsibilities? There was something seriously wrong and she didn't like it one bit. He usually didn't act this irresponsible. It was getting on her nerves.

She quickly took her phone to call Caroline, maybe her friend knew what was going on. After all, it really looked like Stefan had something to do with all the drama. On the second ring she heard her friend groggily saying 'hello', shit, she'd probably woken Caroline. She hadn't even looked at the time; it was only six o'clock in the morning. Wait, six? What time did Damon actually leave her this morning?

"It's me. Elena. I'm sorry I woke you up, I totally forgot to check the time," she apologized quickly, hoping her friend wouldn't be too mad. She knew Caroline liked her 'beauty sleep'.

"What the hell, Lena? Why on earth would you call me at six o'clock in the morning?" she answered annoyed. Yep, Caroline was going to hate her, she didn't even have a solid reason to wake her this early besides her stupid worries about what was going on with Stefan and Damon.

"Sorry Care, really; now, is Stefan with you?" she asked straight to the point, not knowing what else to say.

"Stefan? Why would Stefan be at my apartment? I got home after work yesterday and I haven't seen him since yesterday morning. Didn't you tell me that Damon went to see Stefan? Doesn't he know where his own brother is? Besides why do you need my boyfriend?" Caroline asked confused.

"That's just it. This night Damon came home drunk and now he's gone _again_. I thought maybe Stefan would know what the hell's going on." Damn, why couldn't she be lucky for once? Life could be so unfair sometimes!

"You worry too much, Lena. It probably has something to do with your surprise; don't be such a party-pooper! Just wait and see, it's probably nothing," Caroline said yawning. Really six o'clock wasn't a good time to talk about serious stuff.

"Probably? I need to be sure, Care! What if something serious is going on? I would never forgive myself if something happens to Damon and he's really acting weird! He even forgot that it was Friday today and that I need to go to work!" He'd never forget something like that, she was sure of it. There just had to be something serious going on…

"I'm sorry, but I can't help you, Lena. I'll call Stefan_ later_ in the morning, but I'd like to go back to bed if you don't mind! You ruined my beauty sleep enough already."

"You're beautiful enough already!" she told her friend. "Goodnight Care!"

"Night, Lena. Try not to disturb someone else!" with that her friend hanged up the phone. Elena fell down on her bed again, looking up to the ceiling. What was she going to do now? 'Trust your boyfriend!' A voice was telling her, while another one was making her sick with worries.

She just hoped she could trust Damon that he'd tell her if something seriously was wrong. She wouldn't know what to do if he didn't.

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><p>"You're sure this is a good idea?" Damon asked one last time before his brother would go inside the building and heck her computer. He still couldn't believe he was really doing this, searching through someone's personal stuff, it was sick! God, he never thought he would sink that low. Not even his father was that bad or maybe he was, but that wasn't what mattered at the moment. The most important thing was that his brother was going to do something illegal because <em>he<em> asked him! For god sake, what a mess!

"Like Slater said, it's an easy job. The girl won't be at her desk for more than three hours. It's your building so we're not breaking in, we're just terrorizing her personal stuff, no biggie!" Stefan winked. For a moment he recognized himself in his brother, the careless thing definitely wasn't a good trait.

"What if you get caught, Stefan? I'd never forgive myself!" he said honestly. Even if they didn't have the usual brother relationship, he still loved his baby bro and he would hate it if something happened to him, certainly if it was his fault.

"Don't you worry about me, everything will be fine. You just have to keep waiting here to see if someone comes in the building which I doubt since it's still in the middle of the night, though if that happens, you call me and I'll be outside before you even know it." Yeah, that had been the plan all along, but he still didn't like it. His brother would hack their entire computer network and seek through Jane's personal stuff, hoping to find something decent to blackmail her or to remove the pictures. According to Stefan, he might even find a link to hack her computer at home as well.

Now the only thing he could hope for was that Jane would be so stupid to have all the official documents and copies at work. It was a risky job, but they had to try, he'd do everything for Elena, including robbing someone.

"Stef?" he asked again, just before his brother could go inside along with Slater. He still couldn't believe what was about to happen.

"Yeah?" Stefan said while turning around, watching his brother with widen opened eyes.

"Be safe he told his brother. Damn, he was turning into a sappy idiot because of the love of his life.

Not that he minded to be called sappy as long as he could come home to his beautiful girlfriend each and every night.

"Always," the guy smirked, reminding him too much of himself before turning around again and disappearing into the darkness of the room.

There he stood, waiting for his brother and 'the hacker guy' to come out safe and sound. Not that he thought that Jane would have traps in her office, but you never knew with that slutty little bitch. He couldn't believe he didn't trust Elena in the first place when she told him that his secretary was a threat to them; now it came to bite him in the ass.

Now he was breaking into her office, hoping he'd be in time before she mailed the photos to everyone they knew. It'd be a disaster for both their careers and their relationship would be done before it even started. Of course, it wasn't that illegal, since he was actually just breaking into his own property, but it still felt wrong to take stuff from someone.

He looked at his watch again, his brother had been inside for over a minute now and he was already worrying like hell. Why on earth had he asked Stefan to help him? This was far too dangerous to include his brother; he shouldn't have been so selfish all the time.

Elena would kill him if she knew what they were doing. She was probably already worrying that something bad was going on, not that he could blame her. There was indeed something serious going on, but he couldn't tell her. Her world would fall apart if she knew what was happening and she'd start thinking about her stupid curse again. No, he wouldn't let anything happen to his sweet angel, she shouldn't think that she was cursed. She wasn't 'cursed' – God how he hated that word; a person as sweet and caring as Elena could never be 'cursed'.

Ten minutes later, he started to pace around, what the hell was taking them so long? Maybe they couldn't find the pictures? Damn, maybe Jane had lied; maybe the pictures weren't on her computer at work? Idiot that he was, why would she tell him where she left the real pictures? I'd be stupid to believe a word a word coming out of her mouth.

Just when he wanted to go inside, his brother came out, with a big smile on his lips. "You'll never believe what we found!" he exclaimed laughing. All the tension immediately disappeared when he saw his brother again and he let out a relieved breathe.

"What do you mean?" he asked confused.

"That woman is _crazy_! I found two folders full with sex videos and nude pictures of Jane. You should see them; she has a whole porn collection with herself as protagonist," his brother laughed, patting him on the shoulder.

"What?" Damon asked shocked.

"I think you should return the favor. It's only fair, she blackmailed you first. We did delete the pictures you were talking about, but we're not sure we've the original ones too. But with these documents, I don't think she'll ever try anything anymore."

Damon just shook his head again; that woman was a real slut! He couldn't believe it!

It must've been his lucky day! He didn't really like blackmailing people, but Stefan was right. If he won't do anything, Jane would just go on with trying to destroy his relationship.

"Hey bro, I know it feels wrong, but just think of what the bitch was planning on doing. You can't let her get away with this," Stefan ensured him.

"You're right," he admitted, "Congratulations Steffie, that's probably the first and probably the last time ever, your obsession with computes turned out to be useful! You may jump around in joy now!" he smirked; back to being his old self. He wouldn't be the same sappy lover he was around Elena when he was with his brother, Stefan would find that _way_ too amusing.

After their little discovery, the boys had gone to the first pub they found for a little celebration.

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><p>So a little later, with a big smile plastered on his face, Damon walked into the building again towards his office, ready to give Jane a day she would never forget. 'Oh, sweet, sweet revenge', it felt almost too good to be true. He couldn't believe that Slater and his brother found those pictures, they were just too amazing. He looked inside the envelope with amusement, she didn't even look hot. He couldn't believe she was an actual hooker, or a porn star, whatever you wanted to call it.<p>

When the elevator doors opened an openmouthed Elena was standing in front of him, looking slightly shocked. "What are _you_ doing here?" she asked stunned, feeling embarrassed when she heard her own voice. She sounded too jealous for her own good.

"I finished my business-meeting, but I really have to go now, Lena. I'll talk to you later," he smiled, before walking pass her, leaving her even more stunned than she already was.

When he looked back over his shoulder, he could see she was still standing in the same place, with the same worried look on her face. Damn, he had some serious talking to do, when he came home later tonight.

"Jane, my office, now!" he yelled when he walked pass the woman's desk. He was never one to yell at his employees, but at the moment he just felt like doing so. He hated the girl's guts and he'd never be able to treat her like he would treat anyone else.

"Yes Mr. Salvatore," she said while wiggling her eyebrows when she closed the door behind her. Confidence reading all over her face as she was thinking she still had the upper hand. The thought made Damon smirk; just imagining the look on her face when he will tell her about the pictures was enough to make it all worthy.

"I think we still have some unresolved business, no?" he smirked, liking the way her expression hanged for a few seconds, reading the confidence in his voice.

"What game are you playing, Salvatore?" she bit out, clearly not impressed.

"No game, sweetheart. I have something for you to think about," he smirked before throwing the envelope on his desk, just like she'd done with his pictures.

She looked at him suspiciously, before slowly taking the envelope in her hands and opening it. Her eyes widened and mouth fell open; _that_ she definitely wasn't expecting.

"Where did you get these?" she asked shocked and embarrassed when she saw what he was talking about. Her entire face became pale and her hands started shaking.

"Not important. But don't worry, I'm not planning on using them. That it, as long as you do as I ask," he stated, looking her in the eye. When he saw the tears welling up in her eyes he felt bad for a moment, but that immediately disappeared again when he thought about Elena.

"Wha…what…do you…want…me…t…to…do?" she stuttered, trying to stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks. She hated to cry in front of someone, it made her feel incredibly weak, especially when that someone was called Damon Salvatore.

"Disappear out of my sight; that would be a good start! So take your stuff and leave, I don't ever want to hear from you _ever_ again," he demanded. "And of course, I also want all the pictures you've taken of Elena and me."

"What…happens…to my pictures?" she asked afraid, her voice slightly cracking.

"Nothing; I'll just keep them safe until I'm sure you're not planning on destroying my life anymore." He stood up and gave her a file. "Here's your discharge certificate, I already made it all by myself, how generous, right? The only thing you have to do is sign the file and pack your things. You won't ever hear from me again." With that he left his office and walked straight to Elena's, hoping she wouldn't be too mad at him.

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><p>"That little bitch! I can't believe she did that to us!" Elena exclaimed after Damon had told her the truth about what was going on all along. She didn't like it that he'd lied to her, but in some way, she understood why he did it.<p>

"I know, but you don't have to worry, our problems are solved now. We won't hear from her again. I'm sure she's already packing." Elena just smiled at her boyfriend, still stunned by what had happened. He had broke into someone's computer just to make sure their relationship would be safe? How sweet was that…but how irresponsible? What if he would've been caught?

"What about Rose, she still has pictures right?" she asked afraid.

"I don't think that's going to be much of a problem. On Jane's computer we also found out about one of Rose's secrets. I'm sure that's the reason why Rose was helping her. So I won't make things hard for her as long as she keeps quiet."

When she felt his strong arms around her waist, pulling her closer, she forgot about her worries and just enjoyed their hug. Damn, she couldn't believe he loved her that much. It was overwhelming.

When someone coughed, she looked up to come eye to eye with her best friend. "Someone ready to tell me, why on earth Jane is packing her things and Rose is looking even more pale than usual?" the woman asked shocked.

"Ask your boyfriend," Damon smirked before grabbing Elena's hand and leading her out the office.

"Damon, that was rude!"Elena exclaimed when they stood in the elevator.

"No, that was just a good hint that said: _we're too horny to talk to you at the moment_, ask another time," he laughed before pulling her into an earth shattering kiss.

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><p><strong>Another chapter already? Yes, yes! Thanks to the great work of my wonderful beta! <strong>

**I hope you're all happy with how things ended with Jane. I just couldn't let her get away ;)**

**Oh and for the once who are interested, I started my new story (if you haven't checked it out already). It's called Man on a Mission. Hopefully you'll all like that one too ;) It's completely different from this story, but still very much Delena! I think it even has more Delena moments than this story. **

**Please leave me a review (I'm getting less and less reviews each chapter, btw) and tell me what you think! It's very much appreciated! :D**

**Xoxo**


	24. Chapter 23

**A/N:**** A very short chapter, I know! But I'm trying to keep writing long ones!**

** Now, a special thank you to all the anonymous reviewers! I know I can't reply to your reviews, but they are all very appreciated! **

**Disclaimer:**** I still don't own the vampire diaries. However I consider the plot line as mine. **

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><p><strong>Chapter 23<strong>

It had been a week since Damon fired Jane and Elena had never felt better. She'd never felt more satisfied than the moment that the 'excuse' of a secretary walked out of the building defeated, her eyes fixed on the floor. Normally she would feel bad about it, but after she heard what the woman was trying to do, she couldn't do anything else but feel happy about the departure of the 'little office bitch'. She still couldn't quite believe what the woman had been planning; she'd never expected that the secretary would be so desperate and evil.

Luckily for them, things ended well and she had nothing to worry about anymore. Yeah, Rose knew what was going on, but she was too afraid to lose her own job and just kept quiet, like she was supposed to. They didn't need to be afraid of her anymore. Still she didn't feel too comfortable with the circumstances they were in. Of course Damon and she were together, but because of their jobs they couldn't make it official and it sucked. She'd love to tell everyone that _he_ was her boyfriend, _claim_ him as hers so all those little sluts would stay away from _her_ man…yes, she was feeling kind of possessive. She wasn't really the jealous type, but she couldn't help but feel that way about him. She wouldn't lose him, not again.

He had become the most important thing in the world for her and she was sure it will always stay that way. The day before they'd told Stefan and Jeremy about their relationship, both their brothers had been very happy, but they secretly had seen it coming. Not that it was hard to tell, they spent all their free time together. Sure Stefan was almost sure there's something more between them after the problems with Jane, but he still didn't know how serious their relationship actually was.

Elena was just opening her fridge to see what she would cook when her phone rang. She quickly ran towards the living room where her cell was lying and picked it up. "Hello?" she answered while returning back into the kitchen.

"Hi Lena, it's me your best friend ever!" a joyful Caroline exclaimed, making Elena put some extra distance between her ear and the phone, afraid to get deaf from all the decibels that came out of the device.

"Hi Care. Can you please keep your voice down a little? Damon won't be too happy if you turn me deaf, I'm afraid," she asked annoyed.

"Sure, sorry. It's just…are you free tonight? You and Damon I mean?" the woman asked nervously, making Elena incredibly suspicious.

"Yeah, I guess we are, why?" she asked curious. Something was going on, she was sure of it.

"Nothing special, just double date, if you'd like that of course," Caroline explained.

"What going on?" Elena asked bluntly, growing impatient. She didn't like it when people kept things from her.

"Jesus Lena, don't ruin the surprise! We've to tell you something, duh!" her friend said, almost giving herself away She really had to learn to keep her big mouth shut. Stefan would kill her if she told Elena what was going on.

"Okay. I'll tell Damon we're going on a double date tonight," she agreed.

"Good, very good; see you at eight, we'll pick you two up on our way to the restaurant. Oh and you should wear that crimson red, short cut dress, the one with the open back… I'm sure Damon will be going all wild when he sees you in that one," Caroline smirked quickly hanging up the phone before she really would ruin the surprise.

That's just great, Elena thought, shaking her head. All of a sudden she was having a double date … She sighed; there goes her calm and romantic evening alone with the love of her life. You think she got used to Caroline's impulsive behavior, but she did not, _not_ at all.

She looked at the clock on the wall; she still had five hours to prepare herself for her double date. With her phone still in her hand, she quickly send a text to Damon and told him they were going out before disappearing into the bathroom for a warm and satisfying shower.

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><p>Exactly at eight o'clock the door bell rang and Damon went to open the door, letting in a happy looking couple. Elena shot them a suspicious glance over her shoulder while taking her coat so they could leave. She'd listened to Caroline's advice and was wearing her crimson red dress, as expected Damon's eyes had widened when she walked out the bathroom and he'd told her she looked delicious, which lead to a heavy make out session that ruined her entire makeup and hairstyle. Luckily she still had half an hour to repair the damage and she'd been ready just in time before the bell rang.<p>

Smiling at her friends she walked to her boyfriend who put an arm over her shoulder and lead her out the door. He was looking extremely happy today and she had no idea what the cause was for his bright smiles. She'd wanted to ask him about it, but she didn't have the time since they couldn't keep their hands of each other and every talk ended up in making out or making love. Not that she minded, making out and making love was just fine with her, though it was pretty exhausting too.

Still she couldn't help but wonder why was he wearing that optimistic smile today. It wasn't like anything happened, not that she knew of anyway. In the morning he'd got a phone call and went to work, even if it was a Saturday, sometimes being a CEO had its disadvantages too. She didn't know what the call had been about, but she trusted him enough to always be honest with her so she wasn't suspicious.

"You look stunning Elena," Stefan said when they walked towards the parking lot where their car was parked. He was always quite the charmer, must be in his genes, since Damon was even worse.

"Well thank you, Stef; you don't look too bad yourself," she smiled, giving Caroline a wink. She'd started to use Stefan's nickname too, since everyone except for Damon called him that way. His brother couldn't help but tease him and call him baby brother; typical 'Damon behavior'.

"So which restaurant did you pick out for the lovely ladies, baby bro?" Damon smirked, clearly in a good mood, his eyes twinkling and all.

"Case Luna, the best Italian restaurant in the city, of course," the younger brother answered, smiling proudly for remembering his brother's favorite restaurant in the States. In Italy it wasn't hard to find good stuff, but in the States most Italian restaurants didn't have a very good cook. Luckily this restaurant did have one of the greatest Italian cooks; Marco really knew what he was doing.

"Guess what Care, I don't think we'll ever get to eat normal food again," Elena smiled, amused by their choice of restaurant, it was so typical for the brothers to always choose Italian food. Not that she minded much, she was getting used to eating Tiramisu. Damon was an excellent cook and he always made her the most delicious plates.

"Oh, but I don't mind. Although, do you remember that time Damon cooked for us? That was sooo delicious! You got to remind me to invite myself over for dinner when he's cooking Italian again," Caroline smiled.

"Got the hint, Blondie. I'll call you next time I'm cooking again," the older Salvatore winked, making Caroline blush furiously.

The rest of the ride to the restaurant went rather pleasurable. They laughed and talked together, definitely enjoying their night out. The double date thing maybe wasn't such a bad idea after all. Elena didn't remember the last time she had this much fun with her friends. Everything just seemed easier when Damon was around. Before he came back into her life she never seemed to enjoy herself; not even on her girls' nights out with Caroline.

Her world was just so much brighter with him in it; he was her light in the dark. It was unbelievable how happy he made her by just being _him_, she just loved him for who he was and she would never want to change that.

A few minutes later they were walking towards their table in the middle of the restaurant, it wasn't a cozy cute restaurant like the one in France, but she could see its charm. When they arrived at their table, Damon pulled her chair first, like a real gentleman. Stefan couldn't do anything else but follow his brother's example and do the same for Caroline.

Once in their seats, they started a relaxing conversation and Elena felt quite comfortable with Damon at her side, massaging her upper leg underneath the table, he just couldn't keep his hands to himself, not that she could blame him, she was practically begging for his touch by pressing her right leg against his.

It was then something caught her eye, Caroline was wearing a new ring, one with a big shining diamond on top of it…wait it looked suspiciously hard like a… "You're engaged?" she suddenly blurted out, unable to keep the words from slipping out.

A deep blush crept on Caroline's cheeks when she took Stefan's hand in hers and nodded firmly. "Yes, we are. Isn't that amazing? I was already getting impatient! How the hell could you miss a diamond like that on my finger, Lena? Are you blind or something? Damn, I had to keep quiet until you saw it yourself. Stefan wanted to surprise both of you!" she exclaimed happily.

"Mission accomplished," Damon answered gulping. "I don't think either of us was expecting this." No, they didn't. Elena couldn't believe it, her best friend since kindergarten was getting married! That was like…_huge_! When they were little they always talked about how they would get the perfect wedding with a beautiful dress and a big diamond on their finger. They'd be each other's maid of honor and have an amazing bachelorette party in Vegas.

"Good. So…would you two like to be the maid of honor and the best man?" Caroline smiled, squealing like a little girl that just got a giant lollypop.

"Care…I thought we would wait before asking them?" Stefan interrupted and she just lifted her shoulders, giving him an innocent look.

"I'd love to be your maid of honor, Care! I can't wait to plan your bachelorette party!" Elena laughed, giving her friend's hand a squeeze.

"Really?" the woman asked emotionally, holding her tears of happiness back.

"Of course, silly; you didn't think I would say 'no' did you?" she smiled.

"And I, little brother, would be honored to be your best man," Damon smirked, while giving Stefan a pat on the shoulder, truly happy for his brother. He didn't even know their relationship had gotten that serious. Of course they've been dating for a while now, but he hadn't expect his brother to propose to Blondie. He felt proud of his brother; he found himself a good girl. Even if he wouldn't admit it out loud, he kinda liked Caroline Forbes; the girl had a big heart.

"So, now everyone's throwing surprises on the table, I think this is the perfect moment to tell you all something," he went on. That made Elena look at him suspiciously, she didn't know he was planning something. "Oh?" she asked shocked.

"I quit my job as CEO," he said smiling.

"You did what?" she asked in astonishment.

"I quit my job and found a new one. With my reputation it wasn't that hard," he told his girlfriend smiling happily.

"Why on earth would you quit your job?" Elena asked surprised. She couldn't believe he quit his job without even telling her.

"Now we can finally make our relationship official and tell everyone we're together. You didn't think I'd keep it a secret forever did you?" he smirked.

She couldn't describe what she felt in that moment, except for 'incredibly happy' of course. She jumped in his arms, not caring about the people that gave them cold looks from the tables besides them. He just made her the happiest person in the world. He'd really quit his job just for her?

"If I knew you would jump me like that I would've done it a lot sooner," he laughed, kissing her passionate, forgetting about his brother for a moment. When they pulled back they were both smiling at each other, truly happy.

It was then that Damon realized she was the love of his life and he would never find someone quite like her again. He even felt jealous that it was his brother who was getting married instead of him. He couldn't wait until he could call her his wife… Now he just had to think of a perfect way to propose to her…he would make sure she'd never forget the day that he asked her to marry him, neither would she forget their wedding. Good thing he had his future sister-in-law to ask for help…

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading! So Caroline and Stefan are going to marry... which makes Damon a little jealous ;) Not a big surprise what will happen in the last few chapters... but I hope you're still liking it!<strong>

**And thanks to my wonderful beta I could update both my stories in a very short period of time! Bibi, you're amazing! :D **

**Please leave me a review and let me know what you think of it! More reviews = me being very happy = start writing even faster! (Not that I want to push you are anything, lol). **

**See you all next chapter!**

**xoxo**


	25. Chapter 24

**Diclaimer:**** I don't own the vampire diaries. However I consider the plot line as mine. **

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><p><strong>Chapter 24<strong>

He was nervously pacing around in the living room; dammit, Damon Salvatore didn't do nervous, but he couldn't help the feeling. Today was _the _meeting, the meeting where the company would choose a new CEO. He'd helped Elena to prepare her speech in the hope to become the new leader of the company. He knew she'd be an amazing CEO, she truly deserved that position, but of course, it wasn't up to him anymore. The directors would sit together and discus who was best.

When he left the company only two weeks ago, he'd suggested Elena as new CEO, but that was all he could do. She deserved to become the boss of the company; he knew how hard she'd worked over the last few years. Those directors were crazy if they didn't think she was capable to have such a responsibility.

Leaving the company had been the best decision he'd made the past few years, except from giving Elena another chance of course. A smile crept across his lips when he thought of how happy Elena had looked when she told her aunt about their relationship. She'd been blissful when she was finally able to tell everyone about them. He didn't know it had been that important to her to tell everyone.

Yesterday had been his first day on his new job and he had to admit, it was quite interesting. Of course he missed Elena, but it was better this way. Now they finally could walk through town without hiding the fact that they were more than just friends or colleagues. He never thought he would feel so relieved after quitting his former job.

When he heard the key turning in the lock, he sighed and started walking towards the hall. The door opened and a smiling Elena walked in, when she saw him, she immediately started running towards him and jumped in his arms. "They chose me, they chose me as the new CEO!" she giggled, letting him hold her close to his chest. He easily picked her up from the floor and started turning around until they were both getting nauseous.

"That's great," he exclaimed relieved, honestly happy they chose her. She would've been devastated if she wouldn't have gotten the job she'd always dreamed of. Slowly he started to put her down again, still holding her close to his body so she wouldn't stumble backward.

She looked him deeply in the eyes before closing the remained distance between their lips, soon that wasn't enough anymore and she opened her mouth, giving his tongue access to hers. A warm feeling went through her spine when their tongues met in a battle for dominance and she let her head fell backwards, moaning loudly. She pushed her body against his as close as she could before whispering in a husky voice, "I think it's time to celebrate."

Damon happily complied and picked her up, carrying her through the apartment, when they reached the living room, Elena let him know she didn't want to wait any longer and he laid her on the couch.

Their lips met again in a passionate kiss, while they started pulling each other's clothes off, desperate to savor one another. Damon effortlessly snaked his free hand to Elena's back, unclasped her bra and smiled at the beauty in front of him, all _his_, he thought with an even bigger smile before he kissed her all over, again and again.

Slowly he started trailing down, leaving a trail of butterfly kisses on her skin; he delicately traced the curve of her breasts, slowly spiraling inwards towards her nipples. Gently, he pinched and twisted her nipple with his thumb, smiling as they hardened under his touch. He lowered his head, licked and nipped at her right nipple, while he stimulated the other with his hand, making her beg for more.

Her nails started to rank over his back, while she pushed herself closer to his body. Suddenly his hands went lower and lower until they reached her intimate place. Her heart was beating hard in her chest, while she held her breath, waiting for the wave of pleasure to overtake her.

He could feel the moistness against his fingers and let out a growl, damn she was so ready for him. He teasingly slit a finger between her lower lips, earning a loud moan from Elena.

He kissed her gently, his tongue brushing against hers. She groaned against his lips and kissed him back with as much force and fervor. He maneuvered his hand at her entrance again while his other one played with her nipple, squeezing her breast in his hand.

She bit her lip to hold herself from screaming, instead a soft whimper left her lips while Damon kept teasing her, deliberately avoiding her clit. She couldn't help the 'please' that came out, begging seemed the only way to make him do what she want.

A grin came across his face when he heard her beg, always the gentleman, he gave in and started playing with her clit, adding enough pressure to make her push her hips forward in search for his magic touch.

Her breathing became erratic, her body was sweating, but she didn't care, the only thing she could think of was how good it felt. When his rock hard member brushed against her thigh, she let out a groan, letting him know exactly what she craved.

He quickly positioned himself at her entrance and pushed inside her wetness, a groan leaving his lips when he felt her tight walls clamp around him. He gently started thrusting inside her, making both their worlds spin with pleasure.

She easily matched his thrusts, holding the bed sheets in her fists, while her back arched as Damon continued his pace. She couldn't take it anymore; a strong sensation was growing inside her, yearning to escape.

When he changed the angle and hit her sweet spot with every single move, he brought her over the edge. She moaned in satisfaction, her heart hammering in her chest, when the sensation washed over her in waves. She closed her eyes, but Damon was far from done with her.

He continued stimulating her clit with his thumb, while his shaft was still nestled deep inside her. With a smile on his lips, he increased speed again and started pumping in and out of her.

It didn't take long before she reached another peek, moaning his name over and over again. Her walls were now firmly clamping against his erection, bringing him over the edge, spilling his seed deep inside of her.

He leaned his head against hers, she was still panting heavily, a smile across her lips.

"I love you," she whispered in his ear, slowly sucking his earlobe. Only a few weeks ago she still doubted her feelings for him, but at the moment she was sure it was the plain truth. Damon was the one for her and she loved him with her entire heart and soul. A life without him simply didn't exist, they were just meant to be together.

"Love you more," he said simple before switching positions until _he_ was holding her in his arms. He felt like the happiest man on earth at the moment, there he was, holding _his_ beautiful girl in his arms, knowing it was where he belonged.

"Hm, I think that was a nice celebration," she smirked, while nestling her face in the crook of his neck, never wanting to let go.

"Definitely," he agreed, "Although I think it's time for champagne."

"You bought champagne?" she asked surprised. "You didn't even know if they would choose me!"

"I believe in you, enough to know they just _had_ to choose you," he said confidently, making her smile even more. It was just unbelievable how happy he made her.

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><p><strong>Two Days Later<strong>

"I'm coming," Damon exclaimed when he heard a loud knock on the door, letting out a sigh. He'd just shaved and done his hair, but he was still running around through the bedroom to search a pair of decent clothes to go shopping. He still hadn't moved his entire closet to Elena's apartment and he was seeing the disadvantages of that right now.

Today he would go shopping with no other than Barbie herself. Yep, Caroline and he would go out together… if that wasn't enough already, they were going to buy an engagement ring for Elena. Without thinking clearly he'd told his brother he had no idea where to find the perfect ring, of course Stefan had to tell his nosy fiancée and now he had to go out shopping with Blondie. Right, his 'favorite' kill-time….

He just hoped she was in a good mood today, cause _he_ wasn't in the mood for her babbling. He'd had a few rough days at work, which ended with not seeing Elena much… and he was NOT happy about that. He hated to leave her every morning, most of the time she was still fast asleep, which pretty much ruined all his chances on hot morning sex, even a kiss would be enough, he just needed something…but their schemes just didn't match and if she would wake up as early as he did, she wouldn't get enough sleep to come through the day. After all, she worked much later than he did, he just needed to get up earlier.

She was trying to change that, but she was still busy getting used with her new job. Yeah, being a CEO wasn't always fun. Luckily she chose Caroline as her personal assistant, now Blondie got a raise too, but well deserved since she helped Elena with everything.

When he finally found clothes that didn't look like they came right back from the laundry basket, he put them on and walked to the front door of the apartment, to an impatient Caroline.

He hadn't even fully opened the door when she burst into the room, "Jesus, what the hell took you so long? I'm the woman here, not you!" she exclaimed while throwing her arms in the air. He shook his head and closed the door before turning around. Barbie was in his least favorite mood today, just what he needed, a stubborn, babbling Blondie. Keep calm, Salvatore, he told himself, she's still Elena's BFF.

"Can't I be fashionable late?" he asked pouting, shamelessly teasing her.

"Not if I'm already half an hour late!" she accused before sitting down on the couch. He quickly took a look at his watch and saw she was indeed already thirty minutes late, shit, he was really losing it. Damn, his busy schedule.

"What can I say? I had to give Elena a proper goodbye before she left to work? Not everyone has a full free day like you," he smirked. It wasn't entirely a lie; he did give Elena a nice goodbye before she left, although it wasn't much more than a steamy kiss that only made his sexual frustration worse. Lord, he would be happy once she got more free time again; they had some serious catching up to do; he smirked at the idea, which brought a tense expression on Caroline's face.

"ieuw! No details please," Caroline jittered, making a face. "So let's start with the important stuff, what ring were you thinking about?" she said getting straight to the point.

"Uh, should I know that already? Can't we just go window shopping until I find something suitable for my taste?" he asked dumbfounded, he had no idea at all what kind of ring he would buy. Hell, he still didn't know how to propose or where for that matter, let alone that he knew what kind of ring he wanted.

"Okay. You don't have an imagine in your head or something?" When he shook his head she went on, "Let's see, I brought some brochures, maybe you find something you like in this one," she smiled before handing him the papers. He was glad she had prepared herself well; he on the other hand still didn't know what he was getting himself into.

He started glancing through the brochure, hoping to find something nice. "This ones are my favorites, they're very girlish," Caroline said while pointing to the images, a bright smile coming across her lips. Too bad she was already engaged, though maybe she could ask Stefan to buy their wedding rings at the shop where they sold these.

"They're cute, but not what I'm searching for," he told her, while flipping through the pages. When he was almost on the last page of the brochure, his eyes fell on a beautiful diamond ring, not too big, but not too small either, just perfect. He smiled and pointed at the picture, making Caroline smile to.

"That's beautiful, definitely one Elena would like," the woman said happily, nodding at her future brother-in-law, he made the perfect choice, she was sure of it. "We can go to the jewelry shop right away if you like that," she suggested, trying to be friendly to Damon. He always acted like a total jerk, but she knew he had a good side too, otherwise Elena would've never fell in love with him. Sometimes even she could see that side of him, certainly when he was staring at the engagement ring in awe.

He just nodded his head again and stood up, offering Caroline his hand and pulling her up. "Well, thank you," she said smiling, see that was what she was talking about. They both took their coats before leaving the apartment, heading to the jewelry shop across the street. They were lucky it wasn't too far away, that way they could just walk there.

"So, I've been thinking. Where do you think Elena would like me to propose to her? I mean, I can't just ask her to marry me when we're lying in bed?" he asked after a while, not even sure why he was asking Caroline, but he just felt relaxed around her.

"No, not in the bedroom, that would be like 'here I'm giving you an excuse to have sex again', nope certainly not a good idea," she shook her head. "Let me think…"

The woman kept quiet for a few minutes before she started squealing around, jumping up and down, making a weird little noise. "I know it, I know it!" she screamed.

"Jesus, keep calm, Caroline! People are looking at us," Damon said uncomfortable when they were walking down the street towards the jewelry shop. Damn her; the woman sometimes acted like an overjoyed high school girl that just got a date to go to the prom.

"I just got the perfect idea ever!" she smiled, trying to fight the urge to jump around again.

"Yeah, so what's your brilliant idea?" he asked sarcastically, rolling his eyes. It wasn't that he didn't like her, but sometimes his future sister-in-law could be very annoying, well most of the time that is.

"Paris of course," she said confidently before making a little jump again.

"Paris?" he asked looking at her like she just spoke in Chinese.

"Of course, Paris! She can't stop talking about how wonderful her trip to Paris was and how romantic. How much she loved that little Italian restaurant you took her. You just have to propose in Paris!"

"Really?" he asked smirking, thinking back of their wonderful time together. He didn't know it had meant that much to her. "Maybe you're right, she definitely would like going back to Paris. I could propose to her in the Italian restaurant she told you about. It's definitely romantic," he agreed, shocked that Barbie actually came up with such a brilliant idea.

"Oh, you've got to invite us over! All of us, I mean, all her friend and family; It'd be so brave of you, if you'll propose to her with so many witnesses."

"Right," he said shaking his head. "You're not going to let me get away with it the easy way, hm?" he asked her smiling. A whole room full of people that knew he was going to propose to the love of his life… not really something on his wish list.

"Nope," she smirked, popping the 'p'.

"Okay, I have to admit that sounds really cool, we could even decorate it like her birthday party where we met a few years ago. It'd be something special and romantic," he admitted, not really liking the fact he had to propose with so many witnesses. Okay, it was a good idea, a very good one even. But still…

"Oh my gosh, you're amazing! That's such a good idea!" she exclaimed, starting to jump around all over again, bringing him back from his thoughts.

"Blondie!" he warned her. She just gave him a cheeky smile, before quitting and trying to act normal again.

"But she's going to expect something if I just ask her to go back to Paris," he went on. It was true, this time he couldn't come up with a business deal.

"You could make it a longer vacation, maybe take her for a roundtrip through Europe. If I remember well, she said she'd love to go visit your family in Italy too," she suggested.

"True, she indeed wanted to meet my family. Damn Barbie, you're not as crazy as I thought," he smirked. She'd be overjoyed if she'd finally get to meet his family.

"Thanks I guess," she said, rolling her eyes.

The rest of the afternoon they talked about the plans for the engagement party and Caroline suggested helping him prepare everything and go decorating the place while he was still on his round-trip, especially since she'd been the one to decorate for Elena's birthday-party over four years ago. Their time together went awfully peaceful and they were almost acting like close friend…_almost_.

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><p><strong>I hope everyone liked the chapter a bit, it had some Delena, some CarolineDamon bonding... **

**Next chapter will be set in the future, it'll be the epilogue of this story, which means the story is now coming to its end for real! **

**Which also means, not much chances to review anymore! So please, if you like my story enough to put it on your favorite list, take some time to review too! It's very much appreciated, it's the reason why I write after all!**

**xoxo**


	26. The Epilogue

**A/N:**** Hello my dear readers! We finally reached the ending of Beautiful Stranger. It has been one hell of a ride, but I enjoyed every moment of it. I want thank you all for reviewing, putting this story on your alert and/or favorite list. It means a lot to me that so many people seem to like my writing. It still surprises me every single day. **

**Also I want to thank my amazing beta, for being so patient with me and helping me out. She's awesome! And all those wonderful reviewers who reviewed each and every chapter (you know who you are, lol)! **

**Disclaimer: As always, I don't own the vampire diaries, though I consider the plot line as mine. **

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><p><strong>Epilogue<strong>

It had been three months since she'd become the new CEO of the company, she still couldn't believe the directors really chose her, but they did. And now she was living in her own little fairytale with her dream prince, she never thought she could be this happy. Her life had been hard, it had included a lot of obstacles and faults on her department, but in the end, everything turned out to be worth it and she totally loved her new life.

Caroline had quickly become her personal assistant, which included a nice raise for her best friend, one she could use now there was a little Salvatore baby on the way. Indeed, Caroline Salvatore was pregnant and Elena was going to be a godmother… Who'd ever thought this was going to be her future? It was like all her dreams were coming true…now she just had to wait until she was married herself. Damon and she had talked about marriage and children, but he still hadn't proposed. She already knew the day he would, would be the happiest day of her life. She just hoped it'd be sooner rather than later, because she was growing impatient; like usual. She just knew it would be the perfect next chapter of their life together. Marriage, children… she could finally see those things clearly in her future, _their_ future together.

They were now on their much anticipated trip through Europe, it was their third week and they'd be back in Paris in a few hours. She was growing anxious about it, anxious to finally be in the city of love again. They shared so many beautiful memories in Paris and she'd love to re-live them all.

On their trip, they first went to Italy where they stayed for two full weeks with Damon and his family. It had been wonderful and she'd become close friends with Alessia's daughter Maria. She moved to Italy as soon as she turned twenty and she had now a wonderful husband and two baby girls, who were beyond cute by the way, Maria was the love baby of Alessia and her French husband. Elena had been very anxious to finally meet her since Damon had told her a lot of stories about their family. She'd found out that Alessia was much more to Damon than just his mother's best friend, he truly loved her like his own family. She was the mother figure that he had missed in his youth.

She'd also met Damon's niece Felicia, a very kind and loving woman. She'd been surprised by the hospitality of his family, since she was a total stranger to all of them. According to Felicia they were always like that, besides Giuseppe Salvatore of course, everyone was very kind and lovingly. She'd immediately felt comfortable around his family and she really loved his home country. Beautiful didn't seem to come close to what she saw when she looked around. She could now clearly understand why Damon was so fond of his beloved Italy and its food. Although she still hadn't eaten pasta that was more delicious than the one Damon made for her. He simply made the best food on earth.

Over the past month they'd been driving through Europe and visited the most beautiful places she'd ever seen. She truly enjoyed their road trip, who wouldn't, with a great guide as Damon. He talked about each place they visited with such enthusiasm, Elena started to doubt he actually _chose_ to live in the States. They should buy a vacation house for when they came back to visit his relatives, or simply to enjoy a relaxing holiday.

The day before, they'd stayed on a beautiful beach house on the French South coast; it had been her favorite place up until now. The surroundings had been very romantic and she felt like she never wanted to leave the place again. She'd quickly fallen asleep in her boyfriends' arms. Her heart skipped a beat when she thought back of that perfect moment; she'd never felt more loved than right there in Damon's strong arms with the unending see lying at their feet. Her world had been complete in every possible way she could think of.

This whole trip to Europe had been a wonderful idea, she enjoyed every single minute of it and she couldn't wait to see Alessia again and tell her all about their trip. Too bad it was coming to an end, they had two days in Paris left before they had to go back to the States and return to their usual life of working and sleeping. It felt so unfair, she never wanted their holiday to end, but the time went by and she had to return to her job as CEO. She stayed away long enough already, too long even. There would be plenty of work for her when she got back, but at the moment, she didn't care at all. She just enjoyed her holiday with her dream prince.

"You're so quiet," his warm velvet voice asked from besides her, while he kept his eyes on the road. They've been in the car for over three hours now, but they still had a long way to go. They wouldn't arrive in Paris before the dark. She really loved driving with him, it made her feel relaxed and she just loved to watch the surroundings.

"Hm, hm, I'm just thinking," she smiled while laying her head on his shoulder, relaxing against his chest. They'd got used to driving so close together, sometimes when he got too tired she took over and drove herself, but he never found sleep, he always started teasing her instead. Last time she'd almost crashed the car when he started to kiss her neck and trail lower and lower… She'd been furious, but she couldn't stay mad at him for more than a few minutes when he started pouting like a five years old.

"Only happy thoughts, I hope?" he questioned before giving her a quick kiss, trying to keep his eyes on the road. They were lucky the traffic wasn't too crowded and he could give her _some_ of his attention. He hated it when he couldn't play with her in the car; it was always so much fun to tease her. Although he wasn't the only one who clearly liked to tease, when they were in the car, a few days ago she'd just giving him a mind blowing blow-job while he was driving in the dark. He'd never even dared to dream of her doing such a reckless thing, she usually didn't like being impulsive, but he was seeing a whole new side of her during their trip. It made him love her even more than he already did, which was pretty impossible since he already loved her so much. He had to use all his power to keep control over his own body before finally stopping the car and throw her on the backseat of the car to make her his all over again.

He couldn't believe how much their sex life had improved since their road-trip; they had sex every single day, more than once even. They just couldn't seem to get enough of each other. He was wondering how it would be when they will be newlyweds… He was already looking forward to that time in the future.

They talked about marriage a few times during their trip. She'd obviously been trying to give him hints that she wanted him to propose…she'll be so surprised when he actually does. Luckily she hasn't figured out a thing.

Not that she had to worry about if he would propose; she will get a very real proposal and a beautiful ring on top. He was very glad that Caroline had helped him choose one. It surprised him how close friends he became with his sister-in-law, who would've thought he'd ever become friends with Blondie? Not he anyways.

"All happy thoughts," she told him, squeezing his hand in hers. She relaxed again and started looking out of the window, enjoying the environment they were driving through.

Four hours later they drove into the city of love, by now Elena was fast asleep and Damon couldn't help but stare at the beauty next to him, she looked so happy and peaceful when she was asleep. He just hoped he'd make her day complete by asking her to marry him, because tonight was_ the_ night, the one he anxiously waited for the past three months.

He'd quickly sent a text to Caroline to tell her they were almost there. She'd texted back that everything was ready and that he doesn't have to worry, just relax and enjoy his night. How fucking fantastic was that? How on earth could he relax while he knew he was going to propose to the love of his life with a dozen of people around them?

He'd never thought he would be this nervous, but he was and he couldn't help it. He just wanted the whole proposal to be perfect so he could make his princess happy. She deserved the best of the best, nothing less and he was afraid he wouldn't be able to give her exactly what she wanted.

He had a strong grip on the wheel, his palms sweaty, knuckles white… Damn, he just had to calm down before he'd freak out. He couldn't blow this; it was too important, _impossibly_ important. Probably the most important thing he'd ever done in his fucking life!

A few minutes later he parked the car close to Allessia's restaurant, the beauty next to him started to stir and he lovingly gave her a kiss on her head. "Wake up sleepyhead," he whispered while she opened her eyes.

"Where are we?" she asked groggily when she yawned and stretched her arms in the air, the movement caused her breasts to lift and a wave of lust went through his spine, so far his attempt to stay calm, he should've know she was going to distract him. He quickly pulled her on his lap and kissed her deeply, wrapping his arms tightly around her frame. Damn her for being so fucking adorable, he really had to keep his hormones in check, especially tonight.

"Close to Alessia's restaurant, she asked me to come and eat with her right away," he smiled before pulling her closer again and kissing her deeply, finally relaxing fully against her body. It was exactly the little reassurance he needed before he would ask her to marry him.

"You're so tense," she remarked, searching his eyes, trying to figure out what was going on.

"Just tired from the long ride," he answered lazily, trying to cover his nerves with a little lie. Although it wasn't entirely a lie, he was indeed tired, but it just wasn't the reason why he was tense. She seemed to accept his explanation and maneuvered herself off his lap and out of the car. He quickly opened the door of the vehicle and walked to the other side of the car to help her out, like a real gentleman.

She just smiled up at him before linking her arm with his and walking towards the restaurant. He stopped when they were right in front of the building, getting nervous all over again, he'd be so glad when all of this will be over. He hadn't even prepared a speech, Caroline had told him to just let his heart speak… easy, right? Not if your heart was hammering in your chest ready to explode.

He took her hand in his end opened the door, taking one last deep breath before stepping over the threshold. A crowded room started cheering and he felt Elena tense up beside him. When he looked down at her, he saw the surprised look on her face, she was practically gawking, her eyes widened.

She couldn't believe it, all her friends and family were standing in front of her, cheering and smiling; what the hell? She could feel her mouth fall open,. The place looked so familiar, almost too familiar…yeah of course she'd been here before, but the decoration was different. It almost looked like…oh god; the place was decorated like the ball room on her eighteenth birthday all those years ago.

Damon had done this for her? But why? Curiously she looked up at him, her eyes still widened from the shock, she looked at him questioning, waiting for a decent explanation for what was happening cause she didn't understand it one bit. Why on earth would all her friends be here and was the place decorated like her eighteenth birthday party? It was then that Damon started speaking and the realization hit her at full force, making her cheeks redden.

"Elena, my sweet, sweet Elena, we met five years ago which turned our entire world upside down. We didn't know what hit us, but before we could realize what was happening we lost contact, although the pain of that departure never faded away, we fought through it and went both our own ways, until our paths crossed again. When I saw you in my office that day, I felt…anger, remembering I was stupid enough to let you go, overwhelmed by your beauty, ashamed for not trying harder to reach you, but most of all, I felt relieved that I won't be living the rest of my life without seeing you again…" he paused a second to take a deep breath and went on, "…I never knew what happiness was until I met you, you are my sunshine on rainy days, you're the light to my darkness and I'll do everything to keep it that way, cause I love every second of it. Fate brought us back together and I love you more than I ever thought was possible, my lovely angel, would you grant me the immense pleasure of making you Mss. Salvatore?

During his speech her eyes had started to get teary and by the end of it she was heavily sobbing, her eyes never leaving his. She couldn't believe he was really asking her to marry him, with all these people around! So when he ended his speech, she had to take a deep breath and whispered a shaky, "Yes, I'd love to become your wife," before pulling him into a passionate kiss, forgetting about the cheering crowd behind them.

He never fell more relieved in his life than when she spoke the magical word 'yes'. When her lips touched his, the fire went through his veins and he forgot about everything and everyone besides the angel in his arms. Even Caroline's high itched voice went unnoticed.

When they finally broke apart, Elena was heavily blushing and looking at her friends and family, Damon had just enough time to put the diamond engagement ring on her finger before they both were pulled to different corners of the room by people who wanted to congratulate them. A big smile was plastered on both their faces.

After a few minutes Elena finally had the time to talk to her best friend.

"Oh my gosh Elena, I'm so happy for you!" Caroline squealed while pulling her into a hug.

"Me too," she smiled before looking her friend in the eye. "How much of this was your work?" she questioned.

"Not much, the idea was practically Damon's, I just helped to realize it. So, what do you think of your ring?" the woman asked smiling, truly happy for her best friend.

"It's gorgeous, really, just perfect. Did Damon chose it?" she asked shyly, still overwhelmed by what was happening, she couldn't believe it, she was engaged! Damon Salvatore was her _fiancée_ and soon she'd be called Elena _Salvatore_! Damn, she liked the sound of it.

"He did, he thought it was perfect when he saw it, so we bought it right away. I must say I was impressed by his amazing choice, didn't think he had it in him," the woman joked.

"We?" she said surprised, putting Damon and Caroline together in a 'we' sounded pretty weird to her.

"Yep, we've worked wonderfully together for the past three months, who would've thought, right?"

"You could say that," she smiled. Suddenly she felt two strong arms around her waist, pulling her close to a muscled chest she immediately recognized. Her head fell back and she lazily smiled up, "Hello baby," feeling content.

"Hello my beautiful fiancée, enjoying _our engagement_ party?" he smirked, loving the way fiancée sounded, much better than just girlfriend.

She just nodded before turning around and tiptoeing until her lips reached his to kiss him. He easily lifted her up, bringing her legs around his waist. "I think it's time for a goodbye," he smirked at Caroline. "You'll be able to host the rest of the party on your own, right?" he asked, immediately turning his attention back to the beauty in his arms, not able to wait any longer to take her to bed.

"Already? You two haven't been at your own party for more than an hour!" Caroline exclaimed.

"Duty calls," he smiled, as Elena started leaving wet, warm kisses down his throat, eagerly waiting to go upstairs. They were both lost in their own little world.

"Have fun, although I don't think you'll need it!" she yelled behind them, shaking her head. Jesus, they were even worse than Stefan and she on their wedding night.

The happy couple just smirked and went upstairs together. Never in her life had Elena felt so happy, ready to start her new life with her own _beautiful stranger, _who will soon be her husband.

END

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><p><strong>This is your last chance :D Please review and let me know what you think of it. <strong>

**If you haven't already, check out my new story: Man on a Mission. **

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